Loving You Slowly - Complete
by FaxFiction
Summary: That was about when it hit her. That she was alone. With Fang. On their wedding night, headed to a hotel suite, with nowhere else to be. "C'mon, Mrs. Ride. Come to bed with me." Max raised her eyebrows and gave him a look, one hand playing nervously with the edge of her tank top. She bit her lip and nodded slowly, taking a deep breath. "Baby steps." Citrus and romance. Read on!
1. Day Zero

_Set after TFW. It's five years later. Max has ridden out whatever media train happened after speaking to congress and now works for the CSM. Fang graduated university two years early and has a decent job lined up. Oh, and Max finally said "yes." She manages to hide her wedding-night anxiety from him all the way until it arrives, but she can't help but freak out when it's finally here. Good thing Fang is nothing if not patient. _

_A/N: This story covers a week-long honeymoon where Max and Fang take it slow and learn about each other in bits and pieces. After this clean (T-rated) setup, the rating bumps up to M, although it takes them a few nights of escalating limes to build up to an actual lemon. I'll try to warn you about what's coming in case you don't want to read past a certain point. I've got eight chapters planned out and the next couple written, so expect updates at least once a week, maybe more. Let me know what you think!_

_(This is identical to the oneshot uploaded as "T" earlier this week, but since you can't rate individual chapters, it's getting put here, too. The next chapter is new, though!)_

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><p>The day passed by in a blur of smiling faces and congratulations. Max rushed through a giddy morning with Nudge's fingers pinning her hair and Angel's powder brushes playing across her face and butterflies in her stomach. She clutched at one elbow in discomfort as Valencia Martinez pressed her hands to her mouth in a teary sob, her fingertips all red after fighting with the 20-bajillion buttons in the back of Max's dress. It wasn't long before Iggy slipped into the foyer with a broad grin and hooked his elbow through hers to walk her down the aisle in her white satin dress. Well, really, it was Max who would lead Iggy down the aisle, but the sentiment was the same. They all figured that Iggy had the most right out of any of them to give Max away, aside from Fang. And Fang was otherwise occupied with tugging on the collar of his dress-shirt with one finger and hoping the 50 or so friends in the pews in front of him couldn't see him sweat.<p>

Max laughed nervously as "We Can Fly Away" echoed into the empty foyer. Iggy ruffled his wings before settling them against his suit coat and turned his blind gaze to Max. "You ready?"

"Ih…" She cleared her throat roughly and tried again before settling for squeezing his hand in hers. Someone pulled open the door to the hall and Iggy smiled again, softer this time, and kissed her on the cheek before straightening up and taking a step forward.

Max stared furiously at the hem of her dress and felt her cheeks flush. They were halfway to the altar before she swallowed thickly and looked up to see the smiling faces of her coworkers at the CSM and the friends she and Fang made from his college and her mom and even Jeb. Further ahead stood Angel, who offered her a reassuring smile, and then Nudge, who was practically bouncing out of her shoes in excitement, both lovely in their bridesmaid's dresses. Max let her eyes skip over to the other side where Gazzy was rocking back on his heels with his hands in his suit pockets, waiting for Iggy.

And then there was Fang. Fang, her brother-for-life, with his bright eyes fixed on her and a blush across his cheeks. Fang, her right-hand-man, in a black tux and a feathered boutonniere, made from a few of Max's golden down feathers. Fang, her best friend, with the biggest grin she'd seen on his face since she said "yes" to the man on one knee. She grinned back with a surge of confidence and scrunched up her face at him, crossing her eyes, and purposely brushing against his arm as she put Iggy in his place as best man before moving to stand in front of Fang. He chucked softly and wiggled his eyebrows at her once as the officiant began.

The pair of 'I do's and the too-short kiss quickly dissolved into DJ Gazzy's 'Mad Beetz' and cake up Max's nose and icing in Fang's hair and hugs from every person in the room, at least twice. After their obligatory couple of hours, the two had collapsed at one of the corner tables to people-watch in silence.

"Hey." Max felt Fang squeeze her hand and looked up to meet his curious eyes. She sighed and squeezed back, looking up at the ceiling before rolling her head to the side to look at him sideways.

"I am _so_ over this party. All these people….and the music is _so_ loud…"

Fang grunted his agreement and stood up. He tightened his hold on her and began moving towards the side door.

"Hey!" She hissed, glancing back at the dancing guests as she was pulled away. "Where are we going?" She made a grab for the skirt of her dress, almost tripping and remembering so, so vividly why she never let Nudge or Angel buy dresses when they were kids on the run and fighting Erasers weekly.

Fang turned to her with a smirk and winked so quickly that she almost missed it. He slipped through the door and strode purposefully towards the front of the building. Max arched her wings behind her and dug her heels into the ground. "Hold it, buster! Where are we going?"

"To the car?" Fang gestured with his primary feathers to the limo parked in the drive.

She huffed and pinched her lips together, nodding towards the church. "What about goodbye?" Her eyebrows shot up. "That's all our friends back in there! And the Flock!"

Fang shrugged and turned to open the sleek black door. "We'll see them in a week. C'mon." He turned to kiss her softly on the bridge of her nose before guiding her into the car by the elbow, helping her to lift the train of her dress as she slid and shuffled along the leather seat. He disappeared for a moment to talk to the driver through the passenger window before slipping into the back of the limo next to Max and shutting the door.

"I can't believe we're leaving without saying goodbye. What's my mom gonna think? You know they bought sparklers for the send-off, Fang? Sparklers! Think of all the missed photo opportunities!" Fang stared at her for a second with eyebrows raised before they both bust out into laughter. Max scooted closer to him and leaned her head on his shoulder. "Psh, sparklers. Because fire and feathers are such a great mix." She laughed again to herself and closed her eyes, reveling in finally being alone with Fang.

That was about when it hit her. That she was alone. With Fang. On their wedding night, headed to a hotel suite, with nowhere else to be. She felt uncomfortably hot when he pressed his lips to her temple and quickly sat up. She turned and opened her mouth to speak but his lips were on hers, soft and warm and just so…_Fang._ Mint and aftershave and a little bit of leftover cake icing. Max turned her head and pushed lightly on his shoulder, wincing at his confused expression.

"I just…I ate so much fondu, you know, and I gotta…brush my teeth…"

"Seriously?" He laughed and brushed the loose curl behind her ear, thumb lingering on her cheek. "Max, we used to go for days without brushing when we were living in caves. Besides, I liked the fondu." He grinned at her and placed one hand on her knee, leaning forward, but she leaned back again.

"Fang, please, can't we just wait?" She blinked widely at him. "What about the limo driver?"

Fang sighed and sat back. One hand ran through his gelled hair and he smiled softly at Max. "Okay."

The rest of the limo ride passed in silence. Max fidgeted noisily with the seams on her dress before Fang reached out to ensnare her hands in one of his, squeezing her warmly and shifting so she could lean against his shoulder again.

When they got to the hotel, Fang slipped out first and Max tripped out behind him. She snatched the hem of her dress up off the pavement before heading inside and to the left for the stairs, heels clicking obnoxiously on the marble floors.

Fang stepped lightly behind her, eyeing her narrow heels. "No elevator?"

"Nope. Not even for this getup." She powered ahead and made a few neat turns before they stood in front of room 211.

Fang stood warm and close behind her as she swiped the hotel key card. The red lights glowed dimly. She swiped the card again, and again, and again, before rattling on the door handle with a little growl. Fang reached into his back pocket and pulled out his own key card. He flipped it deftly between his fingers and the door beeped and the lights flashed green and Max glared at him in mock-annoyance as he opened the door for her.

"M'lady." He gave a half-bow and smirked at her before placing one hand against the small of her back and leading her inside. Max shivered at his touch and skipped ahead to crash face-first onto the made bed next to the bags that Nudge had left there earlier that day. Her heels tipped off the ends of her toes and thunked onto the floor.

It was only a moment or two after she heard the door lock when she heard his tux jacket drop onto the chair and felt the mattress dip next to her. All at once Fang's hot breath washed across her neck behind her ear and he was kissing her tenderly, slowly lowering himself to lie next to her, one hand trailing across her shoulders and down her bare back towards….

Max jackknifed up onto her knees and felt her heart pound and looked down at Fang, half-lidded and mouth still open. He blinked twice before knitting his brows in concern, sitting up to face Max and brushing her arm lightly with his fingertips. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong." She shook her head vigorously and slid off the edge of the bed, standing up and turning towards the bathroom. "I've gotta get out of this dress, I can hardly breathe."

Fang reached out for her wrist and began to pull her back onto the bed. "Let me help you with that."

Max whipped around, cheeks flushed, eyes wild. "I can do it myself!" Fang raised his palms in surrender and watched his new wife slip into the bathroom, arms wildly trying to reach the buttons behind her. He stood up to follow her but was met with the mirrored door shutting in his face.

"Max? Seriously, what's wrong?"

"Nothing is wrong, _Fang."_

"Oh, really? And that's why you're hiding in the bathroom on our wedding night in a dress that could stump Houdini?"

He frowned as he listened to her mutter on the other side of the door. He leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms as she brushed her teeth. The faucet shut off and Fang could hear the ruffling of satin and a few more mutterings before Max let out a small shriek and something banged heavily in the tub.

"Max? Max!" Fang heard her groan pathetically. "I'm coming in." He pushed open the door and saw Max crumpled in the tub, legs hanging over the edge, leaning forward and cradling the back of her head. His gentle fingers checked over her skull before pulling back, satisfied that there would be no more than a bruise and a lump for a few hours. He knelt down in front of her and placed one finger under her chin, inviting her to look up at him.

"Are you crying?"

Max shrugged and took in a shuddering breath before staring at the lime-stained faucet, furious at the thick tears rolling down her cheeks. Fang sighed and reached around her to pick her up, carrying her back out to the bed and sitting down with her in his lap. He watched her face and crossed his legs beneath her, pulling her close. He pressed his hot mouth against her sweet lips, passionately, gently sucking and teasing her bottom lip with his tongue.

Max felt her heart begin to race as his lips trailed down to her neck and she felt suddenly claustrophobic. She all but jumped out of his arms, falling unceremoniously onto the floor and pulling the corner of the comforter with her. "Stoppit, Fang, just stoppit! Not right now! I can't do this right now, I can't...I can't _do_ this!" Her words caught in her throat and she swallowed frantically and wrapped her arms around her knees, leaning against the side of the bed.

Fang slid off the mattress to sit next to her, lips drawn into a frown. He listened to Max's shuddering breaths for a moment before saying anything.

"You can't do…_this?"_

Her nostrils flared and she scrunched her eyes shut. "My head hurts and my dress is suffocating me and I don't know what I'm doing, Fang, I can't do this!"

He eyed her stoically. "Cold feet?"

"What? No! Jeez, Fang, I….I choose you, I _choose_ you. It's just, we've only ever kissed, or, or made out, because we've always had somebody in the next room over or the Flock waiting or Mom asking questions whenever she sees us freaking holding hands. And I know what's supposed to come next but I don't know how, Fang!" Max gestured wildly around her hunched shoulders. "I don't know how we're supposed to go from just kissing to sex in one night. I don't know what you want me to do, or what's gonna make you feel good, or if I'm gonna be any good, or…"

Fang ran one knuckled down her arm and looked her in the eye. "Max, just listen, okay? I'm not demanding anything from you. I don't want you to 'give yourself to me.' And I don't want to 'take you.' And anyway, it's not like I know what I'm doing, either." He pecked her on the nose. "I waited for a year for you to kiss me back. I waited another three for you to say 'yes.' I waited another two for this," he played with the slim ring around her finger. "I can wait another few days for the rest of you. It's not a big deal."

She looked up at him with knit eyebrows and wide eyes. "But don't you want me to?"

Fang smiled and leaned his temple against hers. "Sure. More than anything. But I don't want to push you. I want to do it _with_ you. Together. I don't mind taking it slow. We've got a whole week, we'll figure it out together."

Max bit her lip and nodded slowly, taking a deep breath. "Baby steps."

Fang nodded firmly. "Baby steps."

"Okay." She suddenly felt the weight of her wedding and her vows and all the people they left behind, and it was exhausting. "Can we just go to bed? My head hurts and I am totally serious when I say I cannot be in this dress one more second."

Fang chuckled and stood up, pulling her with him. "Sleep sounds good."

Max's lips quirked up into a tight smile and she turned to the bathroom. Fang yawned and stretched and she paused, one hand on the door handle, before turning to look at him. "Fang?"

"Hmm?"

"Can you, uh, help me with these buttons? I can't really reach the ones beneath my wings."

He smirked at her and moved to stand just behind her, his breath tickling the back of her neck. "'Course." His fingers deftly tugged at the buttons to let the top few free. Every few seconds his knuckles brushed lightly against her bare skin and she shivered. When he got to her waist, Max reached back to intertwine their fingers and turned to kiss him on the cheek, one hand holding the front of the bodice to her chest.

"Thanks."

Fang smiled down at her and she kissed his cheek again.

"I mean it. For everything. Thank you."

He smiled and pulled on her fingers before letting her hand fall and turning to rifle through his bag for sweats and a t-shirt. She shut the door and let her dress pile on the bathroom floor around her feet and threw on shorts and a tank top before slipping back out to eye the queen sized bed in the middle of the room. Fang placed the bags on the floor at the foot of the bed and turned to look at Max again. He quirked his head towards the pillows.

"C'mon, _Mrs. Ride._ Come to bed with me."

Max raised her eyebrows and gave him a look, one hand playing nervously with the edge of her tank top.

"Oh, c'mon, Max. I meant what I said. About waiting. We'll just sleep tonight."

She padded across the hotel room floor to perch on the edge of the bed. She felt Fang's strong arm wrap around her waist and pull her to him. Her wings were drawn flat against her back and he drew her flush against him, breathing deeply into the crook of her neck before relaxing his hold and nuzzling her with his nose.

"I love you."

She sighed and gripped his forearm before slipping her hand into his and closing her eyes. "I'm glad I'm married to you." She felt him smile against her shoulder.

"Goodnight, Max."

"Goodnight, Fang."


	2. Day One

_M-rated Content in this Chapter: Grinding, no clothing removed_

**Day One**

Max turned her head to lie on her other cheek and wiggled her toes down deeper in to the cool sand. The sun was hot against her back and she smiled contentedly, flexing her wings wide behind her to feel the ocean breeze ruffle her long feathers. After their obligatory night in their unused honeymoon suite, she and Fang had taken an actual airplane out to Fiji where they loaded their bags into a speedboat generously on loan from the CSM and road out to an island recommended by M. Pierpont. He had "a small island shack" (read: stunning and spacious bungalow) on an unoccupied stretch of beach where the two newlyweds could let their wings out without staring strangers and camera flashes. It really was a pretty little stretch of beach, too, and Max _loved_ beaches. She had always been more of a beach girl, anyway.

She heard crunching shells and shuffling sand before a shadow appeared with a dull thump and the clinking of ice. Max groaned and pushed her sunglasses to the end of her nose to peer up at Fang with narrowed eyes. "Who needs sun block when Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Handsome wants to block the sun for you?"

He looked at her with bright eyes and wiggled his hips down into the sand. "Handsome, huh?"

She was about to reply when she saw the two milky iced drinks that he was holding and sat up with a grin. Max grabbed one of the sweating glasses with her sandy fingers. "Thanks!"

Fang smiled and bent his striped straw to take a sip, swishing it around in this mouth for a second before swallowing. "I hope it's okay. I wanted to make lemonade, but I couldn't find any lemons. I figured the limes would work."

Max chugged about half of her glass before twisting it down into the sand beside her. "No, it's awesome, really. Thanks." She leaned over to kiss him on the jaw and he turned to meet her, catching her lips with his. She felt his tongue run against her lower lip, cold from the drink, and parted her lips to meet him. He tasted of salt water and citrus and Max didn't complain when he pressed his glass down next to hers and rolled over on his hip to grip her smooth waist firmly with his free hand. She shivered as his little finger toyed briefly with the elastic waist of her red bikini before he squeezed her side and pushed against her a little before kissing her again.

The cold from the limeade had long left their mouths when Fang shifted to hover in front of her, leaning closer and closer until they lay together on Max's towel. Her hands gently stroked along his jaw, down his neck and around his shoulders to embrace him tightly. She curled her fingers into his wet down feathers and stroked him lightly. He rubbed small circles into the small of her back with his rough thumb and she sighed contentedly.

She let her kisses trail down his chin, past his Adam's apple, and started sucking lightly against his collar bone when she became aware of a certain hardness under Fang's swim trunks. She paused and felt him kiss the top of her head, her temple, her eyelid, working down to nibble at her earlobe, and she was suddenly aware of his thigh pressing more heavily into hers and his hands playing idly with the string of her bikini top. The heat from the sun was replaced with something glorious and it was terrifying and she didn't want it to go further yet but she didn't want it to stop, either, so she just waited.

After half a minute, Fang noticed that Max had stopped responding and leaned back a little to look at her nervous eyes. He brought one hand up to stroke her chin with the side of his finger and kissed her on the tip of her nose. "Okay. I'm gonna go for a swim." He hopped up into a crouch, wings out for balance, and took a deep drink from his glass. He bent down to press his chilled lips to her temple. "Drink your drink, 'kay? See you later."

Max watched him amble over to the gently lapping waves and laughed before calling behind him. "That's right, Fang, go cool off a little."

He turned to wiggle his eyebrows at her before diving sideways into the waves, not before Max caught a glimpse of his pants stretched taught front of him. She took two deep breaths before lying back down on her sandy towel and fixing her sunglasses, trailing one hand lightly along her thigh and remembering how his hardness felt pressed against her. When it had happened before, she just ignored it and kept kissing Fang, and eventually they would slow down and cool off, no problem. But now? Now, it _meant_ something. She sighed and twisted over to sip her limeade before lying back down in the sun. _Baby steps._

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><p>After dinner, Fang had one arm curled around Max, the other across the back of the small couch. He was watching Max's face in the flickering blue light from the TV screen and running his fingers across the soft skin on her shoulder where her night shirt had slid down her arm. He loved the smoothness of her tan skin and the freckle next to her left ear and the way the hair on the back of her neck curled as it dried after her shower.<p>

Max snorted and laughed noisily at something in the movie and looked up at Fang. She closed her mouth and smiled deviously. "Whatchu thinking about?"

"You." He leaned forward to kiss the side of her neck and she squirmed a little under him.

"I'm still not ready for….you know…."

His kisses smacked softly. "Mmm….s'okay…." He continued working against her neck and Max breathed deeply. Fang's unshaven face rubbed against the soft skin under her jaw when he mumbled, "Just this is good."

She murmured her agreement and let him push her back to lie on the couch, running her fingers through his clean damp hair and loving the feeling of Fang's weight pressed on top of her as he kissed her tenderly. He shifted to hold himself on his knees and elbows, Max lying beneath him, and trailed his lips down her neck to that delicious sliver of exposed skin on her shoulder. It felt even softer under his lips than it did with his fingers and he began to lick and suck lightly, eliciting a shudder from Max. His fingers trailed delicately around one of her hips and pulled down her tank top to cover the exposed skin where it had ridden up past her shorts to tempt him. His long fingers gripped her firmly over her top.

It was only a minute or two later before Max felt something warm bump against her bare thigh and her heart leapt. Fang's breathing deepened and he kissed her more rhythmically, making her feel hot again beneath him. She shifted a little and brushed lightly against the hardness beneath Fang's pajama sweats. His breath hitched and he slowly, slowly lowered himself to drag across the top of her thigh with a shudder.

Fang whispered in her ear. "Is this okay?"

Max wiggled carefully beneath him. His pants were being firmly pressed against her skin and she felt heat ripple out from the spot. "Just….just keep your pants on."

"Yup." He swayed his hips back and forward once, the hardness dragging across Max. She waited a moment before leaning up to kiss Fang full on the mouth and he groaned, kissing her back forcefully and drawing closer to her. Max gasped around his lips as he began to rock back and forth, back and forth, pushing against her with his hips and his lips over and over. She couldn't help but move with him, rolling her hips up and down and kissing Fang sensuously. She was his and he was hers and everything was Fang, Fang, Fang.

Their rocking grew stronger and Fang gasped roughly, rubbing himself against Max through his pajamas and letting her kiss hotly under his jaw. Suddenly he grunted and held himself tense over her, his elbows locked, and then fell forward with his nose squished between Max's head and the back of the couch. She listened to his heavy gasps and ran her palms down his shoulders to his elbows and turned to nuzzle against his cheek.

"You okay?"

He waited a few seconds before responding with a firm kiss and then sat up awkwardly on his knees to lift himself delicately off of Max and the couch to waddle slowly over to the bathroom. She called after him softly and he responded through the crack in the door, "Just cleaning up."

She took the time to smooth her tank top and reposition the waistband of her sophie shorts. She got up to shut off the TV - the movie had long since ended - and climbed under the bedcovers and threw the comforter off the foot of the bed. She was still warm, heart pounding, from kissing Fang, and the thin sheet was plenty. Fang crept out of the bathroom, shutting off the light and coming to join Max in bed.

She eyed his basketball shorts and fresh t-shirt. "Did we ruin your pajamas?" Fang shrugged and smirked at her before mumbling something about baby steps and sliding in beside her. He wrapped his arms around her and trapped her in a big bear hug, wrapping his legs around her squirming body for good measure. "Fang? Fang, gerroff!"

"Mmm-mm." He shook his head and kissed her firmly on the top of her hair until she stopped struggling. He loosened his grip a little to slip his hands beneath her wings and pressed his forehead to hers. "I love you, Max."

She laughed breathily and squirmed down into his embrace, getting comfortable. "I love you, too." She watched him for a minute before muttering, "You're not gonna let me go anytime soon, are you?" Fang pressed his chin against the top of her head and renewed his grip. Max laughed quietly and kissed his neck, since it was flush against her face, and closed her eyes. Just as she was starting to dream, Fang's arms fell slack, so she twisted around to lie with her back against him. His hands squeezed her stomach lazily before he snorted softly and fell still. Max sighed and breathed deeply.

"Goodnight, Fang."


	3. Day Two

_M-Rated Content in this Chapter: Groping over clothes, Max's shirt comes off but bra stays on_

**Day Two**

Max's wild laughter mingled with the rushing of the waves and Fang grinned at her with a flash of teeth. His wings snapped out and he pushed through the water after her, reaching out with grabbing hands. She shrieked and slapped her hands against the surface to spray him with saltwater but he just kept coming.

Max giggled when her husband reached her and grabbed her arm firmly, hair dripping and black wings looming behind him. He snarled down at her playfully and bent to nip at the corner of her jaw, tasting saltwater and tasting _Max._ Her giggles dissolved into murmurs as his salty lips came up to meet hers. She let the swells of the ocean push her against him and felt her toes sinking into the soft sand.

Fang wrapped his arms firmly around Max's waist to hold her steady in the current. His mind wandered to the night before and then it was all he could think about, how delicate Max felt beneath him, how their breath mingled, how utterly _good_ he felt when he was crushed against her. He felt a pleasant swelling between his legs and sucked slowly on Max's lower lip. The heat spread like wildfire when she moaned into his embrace and he sucked harder, hugging her warm body to him.

Max grinned when she felt Fang against her thigh and hooked her arm around his neck. When the next swell hit, she used its momentum to hop up and wrap her legs around his waist, now leaning down to kiss him from above, one hand wrapped around the back of his head. She felt Fang's hips wiggle uselessly beneath her and he pouted against her lips. She laughed lightly and kissed him between his eyebrows.

"What, you wanna ruin your swim trunks the way we ruined your pajamas?"

Fang kissed her chin and murmured against her, "Won't, we're in the ocean."

Max thought about that a second before leaning back to grimace at him. "Gross, Fang! That's like…that's like not going inside to pee because you're already standing in water."

Fang just shrugged.

She shoved his shoulder even though she was still anchored to his waist. "Are you serious? Please tell me you're kidding me right now?" Fang snorted and pulled her back towards him to kiss her, running his tongue sensuously across her lips until she opened them to him.

Max tensed as Fang's hands slid down her back slowly, squeezing her hips firmly before creeping down across her butt to support her. Max cautiously loosened her grip on his waist and let herself shift lower on his hips, gasping when she felt his hot erection _right there,_ between her legs. Fang squeezed her gently and drew her closer, planting his feverish, salty kisses across her collar bone, shoulder to shoulder and back again. She groaned a little as he began to move against her, rubbing his hips back and forth, and she felt a slow heat spread through her in response.

He held her tenderly there in the buffeting ocean and they danced with tongues and hips and waves. Max tightened her hold on Fang when his breathing came in sharp gasps and rolled her hips against his lower abdomen.

Fang let his head fall back and squeezed his eyes shut. She watched his throat bob when he swallowed in between gasps. "Do that again, Max."

She smiled sweetly at him and dropped her hips before dragging them back up to his stomach. "Like this?"

Fang shuddered as Max moved again, his hands moving with her, holding her rear gently and urging her faster. She undulated against him beneath the waves and his breathing fell in rhythm with her and then he stopped and crushed her firmly against him. She was _right there. _Separated from him by wet swimsuits. His head was still lolling back and he swallowed again when his knees buckled and they sunk to kneel in the sand, waves at their necks. She felt him pulse between her legs and kissed him softly on the shoulder before resting her head against him, watching his face slowly relax as his breathing slowed and his head fell forward.

After another minute or two, Fang slowly stood, letting Max stand on her own again. He pressed her to his chest and rested his temple against hers. His jaw moved against her cheek as he whispered in her ear, "I love you."

* * *

><p>Max shifted uncomfortably, sprawled across the couch with one wing extended off the side. Fang looked over at her from where he sat at their little table, eating the takeout they'd flown back from the main island that evening.<p>

He swallowed his forkful and blinked at her before stabbing another piece of fish. "You alright?"

Max huffed and flipped onto her stomach with a groan. "Everything's hot and my shirt feels like daggers and I'm just so thirsty." She squirmed again and shoved her face into the arm of the couch.

Fang watched her quietly and chewed another few bites before pushing his plate away and standing up. His jeans rustled as he approached her, crouching next to her at the head of the couch and gently tugging the collar of her shirt down. He frowned at the heat radiating off her pinked skin and pressed his lips to her.

Max's muffled voice floated up from the couch cushions, "Mmm, your lips are so cold."

Fang grunted. "That's 'cause you're sunburnt." Max whimpered and turned her head to frown at him. He looked at her face and laughed and kissed her lightly on the nose, too. "Okay, Rudolph. You need some help. Ready for another baby step?"

Her eyebrows knit together as she sat up, wincing. "Baby steps? For sunburn?"

Fang raised one eyebrow before heading to the bathroom, coming back with a tall bottle of aloe. "Baby steps. You look like a lobster, and not just your shoulders." Max bit her lip and stared at him for a second while fingering the hem of her shirt. He looked at her pointedly. "You'll heal faster if you let me."

She tugged her shirt a little and winced again as the fabric rubbed against her hypersensitive skin. "Ugh. As long as I don't have to feel like this for the rest of the week." She felt his eyes on her as she slipped her shirt over her head and pulled it over her wings. She looked up at him from beneath her lashes and laughed at his glazed expression, letting the fabric fall to the floor. "It's just a bra, Fang. You've been staring at me in my bikini for two days already!"

Fang flushed and shook his head, sitting next to her on the couch and turning to face her. "S'different. This is…different." He gently turned her so that her back was to him and squirted some aloe into his palm. Max shuddered when the cold liquid touched her skin. Fang gently lifted first one wing, then the other, to smooth the aloe into the delicate skin under them. She began to relax under his touch and sighed, resting her head on her knees and letting her eyes fall shut.

One cool, aloe-slicked finger poked her shoulder. "Back's done. Lemme do the front." Max didn't move so he poked her again, this time slipping his finger under her bra strap. Max jerked away and Fang sat back quickly before bending his head to peck her on the shoulder. He leaned forward to find her gaze and offered a small smile. "Sorry."

Max shook her head and reached out hesitantly to touch his knee. "No, it's….it's okay." She took a breath and twisted in her seat to face him, returning her smile. "Baby steps." She shoved one finger against his t-shirt-clad chest and braced one thumb beneath her bra strap, staring at him pointedly. "But this stays on."

She let the strap go with a slap and Fang nodded firmly. "Yes ma'am." He squirted some more aloe onto his fingers and tentatively began rubbing it in slow circles along Max's collar bone. She shivered again until she got used to the icy burn and tried to relax despite the way her heart was suddenly galloping in her chest. Fang's fingers were soft and assured as he circled lower and lower, spreading the aloe thoroughly. His thumb grazed across the top of her breasts and she gasped. His eyes locked with hers and he hesitated, fingers hovering over her chest.

Max took hold of his wrist and pressed his waiting hand against her. She sighed deeply and leaned forward to kiss him hotly. Fang responded immediately, renewing his slow massage and letting the aloe bottle fall to the floor to use his other hand to gently stroke Max's back. She winced and pulled back with a shake of her head. "Not the back, please?" He moved his hand down to her waist without a word and leaned back across the couch, pulling her on top of him.

Fang's aloe-hand drew bigger and bigger circles, tenderly caressing the soft skin above her bra cups before using his palm to cup the bottom of one breast with a gentle squeeze. Max nibbled along Fang's jaw line and brushed her lips over his 5 o'clock shadow. Fang laughed beneath her. "Your cheeks will be as red as your back if you don't quit."

Max snickered and rubbed her face against him playfully. "Mmm, exfoliation!"

Fang turned his head to catch her lips with his and drew her back to center, moving to caress her chest with both hands now. Max moaned softly against him and let herself fall slack against his hands, giving him soft handfuls of her. She began to nibble just beneath his ear, occasionally nipping the lobe. Fang sighed beneath her and felt himself grow hard and hot inside his jeans. Max noticed, too, because she placed her palms on his chest and pushed her hips slowly down into his lap.

Fang squeezed her tighter and twisted so he was crushed against the back of the couch with Max lying next to him. He kissed her cheek tenderly and one hand left her breasts to trail down her arm. He intertwined their fingers before slowly drawing their hands down his body, stopping just on top of his thigh. His dark eyes fixed on her face to judge her reaction. He kissed her cheek again, long and hot, letting his lips hover over her skin, and nudged her hand between his body and hers.

Fang gasped and Max stiffened as she felt the bulge between his legs and the heat radiating from it. His hand nervously danced over hers, giving her room to take it back if she wanted to. She breathed him in deeply before pressing her fingers against him and he groaned throatily. She tentatively pressed her fingers in a few places along his bulge before his hand came over hers again, gently urging it along his length, up and down, slowly and together. She took over quickly, running her hand across him, feeling the rough denim beneath her palm and the soft give of the erection hidden beneath. Fang's head lolled against the back of the couch and he lay there, breathing deeply, before resuming his two-handed massage of Max's chest.

Max tucked herself into him with a sigh, trying to avoid falling off the edge of the couch. She felt down further with her wandering hand and felt his testicles hardening at the base of his member. She gave him a teasing scratch through his jeans and he tensed against her with a whimper. His hand came over hers once again and he maneuvered her to his end, pressing her palm harder against him and coaxing her to rub faster. She took over again, diligently rubbing over his tip again and again. His fingers twitched and he pressed his head into her shoulder before turning to kiss and nibble distractedly beneath her earlobe. The hand that still fondled her breasts kneaded her harder, faster, matching the rhythm of her hand with his. Max felt him grow harder beneath her and sped up her hand-work.

Fang, in his ecstasy, dared to dip his thumb beneath the black fabric of Max's bra. He felt the delicate skin around Max's nipple, impossibly soft beneath his fingers. She gasped and shifted slightly but didn't stop rubbing along his length. He brushed his thumb over her nipple and felt it harden quickly. His breathing grew ragged when he rolled it between his thumb and pointer finger and Max moaned loudly, gripping his erection through his jeans and forcing him over the edge. His hips jerked twice by reflex and he tensed and then he lay there, gasping for breath, feeling his pulse slow and his member soften.

She ran her fingers across the jeans over his member once more before bringing them up to stroke his collarbone under his t-shirt. Fang kissed her softly, fingers still rolling her nipple gently, before removing his hand and just lying still. Max smiled at him and kissed his closed eyelids gently. "I love you."

Fang just grunted and reached one hand up to stroke Max's chest over her bra, and she laughed. She peppered his face with quick kisses before tucking her head under his chin and wrapping herself around him, his hand still cupping her. "Will you redo my aloe later?" She felt him nod above her and sighed contentedly. "Kay."

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><p><strong>AN: Thank you for reading! Day Three is written already, and I'm halfway through Day Four, so keep posted for more updates. Don't forget to review. =)**


	4. Day Three

_M-Rated Content in this Chapter: Topless play, Max gropes under Fang's pants but pants stay on_

**Day Three**

The next morning, Max woke up late to Fang's lankly legs tangled in hers and the rush of rain on the roof of their bungalow. She craned her neck around to look out the window and frowned at the black sky above the sheets of rain before turning back around to snuggle into the sleeping man beside her. Fang grunted when her elbow dug into his stomach and blinked sleepily before staring at the water sliding down the glass porch doors.

Fang looked down at Max. "No beach today, huh?" She grunted in disapproval and Fang smiled, kissing her sloppily on the cheek and sliding over her to climb out of bed and go brush his teeth. She propped herself up on one arm and wiped her cheek roughly with the other.

They shared a quiet breakfast while Fang checked on his blog and Max fiddled with the outline for her second book. She grew bored quickly and went to clean up in the restroom before burrowing back into the bedcovers. Fang watched the lump on the bed with narrowed eyes for a minute before getting up to go lean over her. She peeked out from the top of the covers warily. "What?" she challenged.

Fang grabbed Max's wrist and pulled her off the edge of the bed to stand next to him, the covers crumpled around her waist and falling to the floor. "What is it, Fang?" He grinned and wiggled his eyebrows and began to lead her to the sliding doors. She eyed the rain pelting the glass and laughed when he pulled one open and tugged her towards the porch. "Are you serious? I'm still in my pajamas!"

Fang yanked her close to him and kissed her roughly before pulling her out into the storm.

"I'm always serious."

Wet sand flew under Fang's footsteps and Max trailed behind. He let her wrist go and they were sprinting together with waterlogged wings flying behind them. Max laughed wildly and Fang grinned like a Cheshire Cat, making grabs at her and trying to catch her eye as they ran.

Max cried out when Fang stopped short beneath a palm tree and caught her around the waist, sending her crashing into his chest. His eyes were bright as he took her in and tried to catch his breath. She was suddenly oh-so-aware of how close her body was to his, of every place his bare skin touched hers, of the delicious rumble at the bottom of every breath he took. Fang licked a raindrop off his lip and reached up to smooth Max's eyebrow before pulling her close and letting his lips hover just in front of hers. Her breath hitched and Fang chuckled and then growled playfully.

"I want you."

Max felt heat pulse down to her toes but pulled back from their un-kiss, placing her hands against his chest between them. She breathed him deeply and let her hands drag down his torso, laughing at what she felt there.

"You've been so horny all week. Even the rain turns you on." She flicked one of his cold nipples with her thumb but Fang just smirked at her.

"And this is just because you're cold, right?" Fang ran both his hands down her front and she gasped as her breasts bounced beneath him. They both looked down to see her nipples very obviously standing at attention beneath her thin night shirt, the rainwater running rivulets on top of the white fabric, and Max hurriedly folded her arms across her chest. She blushed royally because he had been able to see _right through_ her t-shirt to the dark brown circles beneath it. Fang laughed and she glared up at him.

He gently took hold of her elbows and tugged playfully, trying to get her to uncross her arms. "C'mon, Max."

Her eyes widened and her blush deepened and she let him tug her arms apart. "Fang?" She regarded him anxiously, waiting to catch his eye, but his gaze was fixed on her semi-exposed chest. "Yo, Bird-boy, I'm up here!" She shoved his shoulder and he blinked wildly before meeting her eyes, a blush evident across his own face.

"Beautiful."

She made a silly face at him to cover her lingering embarrassment and her surprise at his blunt honesty. "If those whitecoats did anything right, at least they made us reasonably attractive. It was the least they could do for those of us destined to save the world. I am _the _Maximum Ride, after all."

"Mmm, I haven't ridden anything yet."

"Ex_cuse_ me!" She shoved him again, harder, and he caught her wrist in one hand and kissed it wetly, shooting her a goofy grin to smooth over his naughty joke. Slowly, he shuffled her around so that her back was to the palm tree and pressed himself closer for another kiss. Today her lips tasted of rainwater and leftover breakfast and lingering toothpaste. Fang thought it tasted like home and freedom and promise all at once and licked his tongue under Max's upper lip to get more of her. He quickly abandoned thinking about tongues and lips when he realized that he could feel her hardened nipples right through their clothes. His roaming hands left her firm rear to pull gently at the hem of her shirt and he leaned back to look Max in the face.

"Can I?" He lifted the front of her shirt just past the taught skin around her belly button and waited.

Max blinked incredulously and her fingers flew to her shirt hem, fingering it nervously and locking her little finger with Fang's. "I can't be _topless _on a beach! That's indecent exposure!"

"We're alone." And he was right, they were, all tucked away on M. Pierpont's private island. He kissed her softly and pulled her shirt up a little bit higher and felt a thrill pulse through his stomach when his knuckles brushed against the underside of Max's breast. Her breathing stuttered and she slowly raised her arms. Fang took the cue and broke the kiss to pull Max's shirt the rest of the way off, tossing it away into the rain-soaked sand, and carefully took her silky breasts in his palms.

She leaned back against the rough park of the tree and sighed a little, closing her eyes. Fang watched in fascination as the raindrops splattered down her soft, pale flesh. Her supple breasts bulged rhythmically beneath the kneading of his palms. He used his thumbs to flick her nipples a few times and they hardened incredibly, giving him another thrill.

He pressed his mouth into the yielding flesh of one soft mound, cupping the other softly, and worked with his tongue and his lips around and around until he was kissing her velvety nipple, gloriously sucking and licking around the tense areola and feeling Max melting against him. Rain ran into his eyes and he switched sides, taking her other breast in his mouth and lightly caressing the first with feather-light fingers.

"Oh my goooood, Fang…." Max moaned languidly and Fang nipped a little at her with his teeth before rolling her nipple between his lips. She felt relaxed and warm all over and so secure beneath Fang's touch. She sighed in pleasure as he moved to kiss between her breasts, holding each in one hand and running his tongue slowly between them. He pinched her firmly and she gasped at the jolt that she felt between her legs. "Fang!"

He pulled back quickly, looking worriedly at her, but she just shook her head before holding his face between her hands and kissing him firmly. "It's good…" Another eager kiss, a kiss on his chin, a kiss on the corner of his mouth, and again on his lips. "So, so good."

Max felt Fang smile against her and he gave her one last squeeze before winding his lithe arms around her bare back and hugging her close to him, swaying her back and forth gently. They half-danced together for a minute or two before a peal of thunder cracked open the skies, making their feathers stand on end. Max made a grab for her wet, sandy t-shirt before sprinting towards the bungalow, "The shower's mine!"

Fang was a split-second behind her, distracted by the way her breasts swung as she ran and feeling himself harden impossibly before another flash of lightning chased him back inside.

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><p>Later that evening, when they had showered, eaten, and lazily watched another movie, Max and Fang clambered into the massive hammock on the covered porch of the bungalow and tucked their legs under the plush comforter that Max had dragged out with them. She lay on her back watching the rain fall in sheets across the twilight beach, one hand in Fang's and the other stretched over her outstretched wing, hanging off the canvas edge. Fang was propped up next to her on one elbow, wings folded neatly. He traced the pale white lines and puckered pink marks punctuating her skin with a feather-light touch. It gave Max goose bumps.<p>

The _shushing_ of the rain grew to a dull roar and Max turned to watch Fang's hand scrawl in the language of war and loss across her body. His touch was gentle and sure as he traced her mountains and valleys over and over again. One thumb trailed down a particularly long, nasty mark across the top of her chest and she breathed, "Bad memories."

Fang's hand stilled, thumb lingering at the end of the line, and shook his head with a glance at her face. "Beautiful."

Max snorted derisively. "Yeah, right. Ask Victoria Secret if they want another skinny-ass model. 'This one's got real wings, folks, but the scars are straight outta some slasher flick!'"

Fang sat up a little and looked down at her through his long lashes, hand still pressed to her chest. "No, you don't get it. Your scars are _the most_ beautiful." He brushed over a pale line on her ribs, "Strength," and another under her right breast, "Perseverance." He grazed over the depression from the bullet she took in her shoulder, "Compassion," and pulled down to caress the long line on her wrist where her microchip used to be with a bitter smile, "Stubbornness."

Max just smiled and pressed her hand against his neck with her fingers curled around his ear to touch his dark hair.

"You are the most beautiful woman I've ever seen."

With that, Max pulled him down roughly to meet her lips. She turned her head and whispered in his ear, "Who taught you to say such pretty things to girls?" She kissed him lightly, then again, and then again with parted lips and hot breaths. She wrapped her leg around his hip and pushed him over, coming to rest on top of him. She regarded him for a minute, lower lip between her teeth, and whispered, "I wanna learn what makes you go." Her lips quirked and Fang blinked up at her and then at her chest which dangled in front of him captivatingly. Max snickered and took hold of his forearms, leaning over him. "Hands off, bud, _I _wanna make you go."

"Seriously, Max?"

"I'm always serious." Her sweet breath washed across his face with stolen words and she began nipping her way across his jaw, trying to remember what she had done to make him groan during all those _other_ times when they made out.

"Mmm," Fang sighed when Max tasted the place just below his ear, so she grazed her teeth against his earlobe. "I like that," his breathy whisper ghosted across the back of her neck. She sucked lightly on him for a while and then, bored, kissed down to bury her face in the fleshy part where his shoulder met his neck. Fang relaxed beneath her, reaching to hold her hips lightly, and sighed again when she began to suck hard enough to leave a bruise.

"Don't stop," he groaned and felt his erection mounting between them.

Max grinned against him and then pulled away to lean her chin against his chest. "Baby steps, Fang. Baby steps." He looked down his nose at her before closing his eyes and letting his head fall back in frustration.

Max lazily dragged one hand down his torso, increasing pressure when she reached his inner thigh. Fang didn't move, but his breathing deepened and his pajamas twitched. Max trailed her hand across the lap of his pants and teased gently at his waistband.

Fang's eyes shot open and he looked at Max in surprise. Her expression was focused and intense as she dipped her hand into his pants. He lifted one arm to take hold of her wrist and make her stop or make her go or do it with her or _something_, but Max's hand slipped all the way in and her fingers twisted into the coarse hair above his erection and he felt frozen in pleasure. A guttural, "ah," escaped his lips when her cool fingers grazed the skin of his shaft.

Max threw a glance at his face and her eyes glowed with pleasure. She gently ran her flat palm down his length before lightly fingering the tip. "You're so _soft_…and warm."

Fang felt his heart began to race. She was _his_ Max, bare breasts crushed against him with maddeningly erect nipples and her hand, her teasing, soft, I-can-kill-a-grown-man-with-my-little-finger hand was finally touching him _there_. There was near-nakedness and skin-on-skin and her determined fingers wrapped around his length before squeezing lightly. Fang's eyes fluttered back into his head and his tongue fell slack inside his mouth. Max sighed tantalizingly as one finger smeared the drop of pre down the underside of his glans and then she was touching his balls and her fingernails felt like ice and the sun.

It was not more than half a minute from the moment Max's hand disappeared into his pants that he lost it, tightening and pulsing and emptying himself prematurely into her fantastic hand with a drawn-out, open-mouthed whimper and eyes clamped shut.

Max grew still and watched Fang's chest rise and fall with each gasp. She could feel his heart pounding beneath his skin. Gingerly, she let go of his softening erection, grimacing a little at the warm slickness running down her palm. She swallowed once and turned to look at him where he lay gaping like a goldfish. "Are you okay?"

Fang's eyes fluttered open and he nodded. "Yeah." He reached down to caress her wrist and wiped her palm against his pajamas. She wrinkled her nose a little and touched her thumb to her sticky fingertips and Fang flushed in embarrassment.

He tilted wordlessly off the edge of the hammock and disappeared into the bungalow, leaving Max swinging. At least five minutes went by before she finally followed him inside, arms self-consciously crossed against her bouncing chest. She found him stuffing his sticky pajama pants and boxers into the laundry basket and wearing only black socks and a pair of well-worn boxers.

Max trailed into the bathroom behind him where he began washing his hands, cheeks still flushed and lips drawn into a harsh line. She stared down at her fingers, shiny with the drying fluids, and tried to figure out where to begin. "It just happened so…so _fast_."

Fang glanced her way from the corner of his eye before looking back at his hands.

"Is it supposed to hap-?"

"No."

She watched him scrub soap between his fingers meticulously. "Did I do it wrong?" She cursed inwardly at the way her voice caught in her throat.

Fang looked at her again and his eyes softened and he shook his head almost imperceptibly. He yanked a hand towel off its hook and soaked it with warm water before turning to Max. He took her hand to wipe it gently with the warm cloth, scrubbing between her fingers and across her palm and refusing to look her in the eyes. She remained still beneath his touch.

When he spoke again it was nearly inaudible. "No one's touched me there before. Not without white gloves and a syringe, anyway."

She watched him carefully. "That's a big deal, huh?"

His eyes crinkled and his lips twitched. "Kinda blew my mind." He lifted her clean hand to kiss her knuckles softly and finally met her eyes.

Max thought she had never seen him more vulnerable, so she grinned fiercely and wrapped her hand around his and leaned in. "We'll just have to do a lot of practicing while we're running the laundry tomorrow."

Fang's nostrils flared and he gave her a tentative half-smile.

"Besides, Itex can suck it. They stole the first 10 years of our lives. I won't let them have this, too." She pecked him on the lips before pulling him back towards the door. "C'mon, come back to me. I wanna sleep outside."

She pulled him into the hammock with her and tucked the comforter around them and wiggled closer as he hesitantly wrapped his arms around her bare torso and slid his hands beneath her wings. His smooth chest was her pillow and he drew lazy circles across her velvety under-wing skin. She closed her eyes and was quickly on the edge of sleep under the hush of the pattering rain and the steady rise and fall of Fang beneath her. Just as she slipped out of consciousness, Fang murmured against her neck, "Goodnight, love."

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><p><strong>AN: A little bit of embarrassment for Fang, huh? Good thing Max is so awesome. Let me know what you thought! Don't forget to review.**


	5. Day Four - Morning

**A/N: Thank you so much for the reviews! Thank you especially to Nola96 for finding and reviewing **_**both**_ **my stories. Finding your feedback the other morning was super encouraging. I'm excited that you care about the work Max and Fang have to do, and I hope I can continue to give that justice. Even in the middle of some really hot teasing.**

**My chapters have started to get real long, too, so Day Four is broken up into two parts. In a few days, you'll get Day Four, PM edition, and I love it loads better than their morning. But there are some moments, too. Here's their morning after poor Fang's embarrassment.**

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><p><em>M-Rated Content in this Chapter: More second base for Fang<em>

**Day Four - morning**

"Max…._Max…_"

Max felt the stiffness in her back and winced. Probably lying on top of one arm with the other splayed awkwardly over her head wasn't helping.

"Max?"

She pressed her eyelids shut in a futile effort to hang onto the last wisps of sleep. The soft hush of raindrops on palm leaves came into focus. The tangled comforter hid her legs and hips from the humid breeze that breathed across her bare chest. Calloused fingers traced a long _m_ across the top of her breasts and she shivered.

Fang laughed through his nose and his sticky sweet breath washed over her. "Good morning, Sunshine."

One glassy brown eye peeked at him from beneath a web of hair. "Fimore minudds." She sighed and turned her head to watch Fang anyway. He was tracing all of her scars again, letting his palm linger in the dip of her waist, the curve of her breasts, the softness between them. Max was about to laugh and make a poorly thought-out _sexist pig_ remark when Fang's black eyes met hers. The familiar darkness was warm and soft and the sheer tenderness in his gaze just about took her breath away.

"I love you." The whisper flew off her lips before she even thought the words. She held his stare for another moment before leaning up on an elbow and kissing him softly. She wanted so badly to match his tenderness with her own. Fang kneaded her breast tenderly and drew slow, lazy circles around its peak with one rough thumb.

They took turns kissing each other gently, chastely. Max pressed her lips to his arched forehead. Fang pulled her down and tasted the sweetness of the place where her lips met her cheek. She trailed down farther, to his strong chin, and he explored the side of her long nose. She bit gently against his stubbly jawline and his careful lips touched the soft places beneath her eyes.

Max tucked her head under Fang's chin and breathed him in deeply. "I could stay here forever. Let's just go back to sleep, Fang." Her fingers played against his ribs like piano keys. "We can just…just sleep until the rain stops and then we can sit on the beach again."

"Back to sleep? It's after noon."

"Yeah, right." Max rolled her eyes and sighed. "The rain makes everything feel weird. What's the point of having a destination honeymoon at the beach, anyway, if you don't even get to be at the beach?"

Fang twisted around to peer inside the bungalow at the wall clock. "It's…almost 1:30."

"What?!" Max shot up and her head connected with Fang's with a heavy thunk. They both cried out and Max hunched over and then they were on the ground. The twisted hammock whapped Fang's chin as it flipped itself upright. Max was crushed into the red stone porch underneath him.

He scrambled off of her and looked down at her dazed expression.

"You okay?"

"Think so." Max slowly sat up with one hand pressed to her temple where she'd collided with his skull. Fang regarded her carefully before gesturing to the nasty scrape covering half of her knee. Max watched the blood begin to bead a little bit at the surface and grimaced. Fang raised one eyebrow and Max countered with a grunt, moving to stand up.

Fang, however, had other ideas. He wrapped one arm beneath her knees and the other under her arms and picked her right up off the floor.

"Fang, put me down!" She flapped once, twice, and then let her wings dangle beneath her with a frustrated grunt.

"Nope. I'm gonna fix you."

"C'mon, Fang, really? I've had worse."

He jutted out his chin, clearly resolute. "You're bleeding."

"Mauled. By Erasers. Multiple times."

"You're my wife."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

Fang kissed her delicately on the nose. "It's my privilege. I get to be the one to patch you up now." He set her down on the bathroom counter and pulled open the medicine cabinet. He pulled out an ancient, single wrapped gauze pad with a yellowing wrapper, a tube of ointment, a dark brown bottle, and a box of small-sized band-aids probably at least a decade old. He dropped down to his knees in front of her and began to work.

Max sucked in a harsh breath when Fang cleaned her scrape with hydrogen peroxide. She inspected the ointment while Fang pulled at a tear in the wrapping of the clearly-non-sterile gauze pad. "This expired in….1999." She passed the tube to his waiting hand. "Guess even when you own secluded island bungalows across the world, there's no time to restock the first aid kit."

Fang's brows furrowed in concentration as he taped the edges of the pad down with half the box of band-aids. He finished with a firm kiss on top. Max caught him looking at her in a way that made her flush before he proceeded to nip and peck his way slowly down her fleshy calf, massaging fingers following. Max sighed when he moved from one ankle to the other and began working his way back up. When his hot breath washed across the top of her thigh, her breath hitched and she squirmed.

Fang's lips curled in a devious smirk and he stood up to meet her with a deep kiss, leaving his hands with fingers trailing across her kneecap. He continued his slow massage, inching upward. One hand snaked up and around Max to press between her wings and the other touched her lighter, and lighter still, as it continued its journey up her thigh.

When Fang's fingers brushed beneath the loose leg of her shorts, Max grabbed his wrist and pulled back from the kiss. Fang saw the flash of nervousness in her eyes and pressed both hands to her face to kiss her between the eyes.

"You're the boss. It's okay."

She thought furiously, fingering the makeshift bandage on her knee, before staring into his eyes determinedly.

"Underwear stays on."

Fang's eyes lit up and he smashed his face against hers. He let his fingers follow the curve of her body down to her hips. His breath quickened as he fingered the elastic of her shorts, tugging it slowly over her rear and pulling it beneath her. The fabric slid off her legs and hit the floor and desire coursed through his belly. He gripped Max from behind and massaged her gently, reveling in his close proximity to her fine, fine ass.

Max swore she could feel rivers of fire fanning out from the places Fang touched her, even with her underwear between them. She felt heat between her legs and groaned into Fang's lips. She gasped as he brought one hand around to the front of her, slowly feeling around the fleshy top of her thigh and the crevice where her hip met her pelvis and then his fingers were on top of her, pressing gently into her mound through her underwear before moving down further between her legs.

Max groaned and pressed her forehead into Fang's shoulder. He brushed his lips against the soft shell of her ear and stroked her through her panties, up and down, up and down, using light pressure and the side of his palm. He felt heat spread through him when her panties grew damp. He could feel the swelling of her inner thighs giving him a real handful of her. He sucked hard against Max's neck and she moaned again, quietly.

She let him continue for some time before pushing him away and sliding off the bathroom counter. She wiggled her hips, feeling the swelling pressed between her thighs, and sighed in satisfaction. She grinned at a very pleased Fang and grasped his shoulders, twisting them around until he was the one leaning against the counter. Max could feel Fang's growing arousal between them, but didn't look down until Fang let out a sharp gasp and she felt something soft and warm and definitely-not-just-Fang's-boxers brush against her thigh.

Fang looked down. His cheeks reddened when he saw his tip trying to poke out of the flap in his boxers. He looked at Max again, afraid to move and wanting to judge her reaction, but her eyes were fixed on the pinked flesh with a peculiar gleam.

Slowly, agonizingly slowly, she reached out to stroke the interruption with one finger and it bobbled happily in response.

Fang's breath quickened. Max could hear her heart pounding in her head.

She looked up at Fang's eyes and drew her bottom lip between her teeth. "Can I see it?"

Fang waited several long seconds for the punch line, but there was none. She just looked back down at his exposed part and waited. As soon as he realized she was serious, his hands flew to the elastic waistband and he shoved his underwear past his hips and let it drop. He kicked it away and straightened up before her. He kept his eyes glued to her, and hers to his crotch.

Max looked at him appraisingly and saw the veiny, hairless flesh lean rigidly against Fang's thigh. Tentatively, she reached out to place one hand on Fang's hip and stroked the valley of his joint with her thumb, tight along the edge of the course hair that grew thick around his erection. The blushing member stood at attention at her touch and her eyes lit up.

She nodded once and looked back up at Fang's face. "We're going to practice again. I'm going to touch you, like….like last night. And you're going to tell me if I need to do something different or go more slowly or whatever. Okay?"

Fang nodded and swallowed thickly. "Yup." When she kneeled in front of him in just her panties and pulled his knees apart a little, he groaned in anticipation. His wings lifted off his back, halfway unfurled, quivering.

Max pursed her lips. "I don't want to go too fast for you again."

"Nope." He bent over to kiss her cheek before leaning back a little against the cold counter. He watched Max's small hand reach for him. She wrapped her fingers around his shaft tentatively. She smiled encouragingly up at him and began to move, stroking along the length of his erection, squeezing her fingers around him. He grunted and tapped her wrist, "Too hard." She nodded sharply and loosened her grip.

"I have _no_ idea what I'm doing…." Her mutter floated up to Fang. He reached down with one hand to wrap his around Max's, pressing lightly until she mimicked his touch against his swollen need.

"Like this." He stayed with Max for four or five delicious strokes before letting his hand fall and leaving Max to do the rest. She felt his impossibly smooth skin glide over his swollen member and was suddenly aware of the swelling between her thighs. She stroked him rhythmically, up and down and up and down and pulling his flesh towards the end of him again and again. The shaft in her hands thickened and grew harder.

"You okay?" She trailed her fingers around the base of his cock and tickled him lightly against the underside. He grunted and leaned back against his elbows.

Max dropped her hand to timidly cup his testicles in her palm. She could feel the two lumps shift smoothly beneath the hairy flesh and watched as the skin around them tensed up, rippling like raisins. Fang's member jerked and he gasped. "_Maaaaax…."_

"Yeah?"

"I'm gonna….gonna cum…."

She chose to ignore him and instead slid her fingers up his shaft towards the swollen tip. The flesh there was impossibly reddened, almost purple, and shiny with swelling. Fang's head lolled back and his shoulders tensed. Max glanced at him before pressing her thumb against his opening. She spiraled out, spreading his pre-cum around and around the mushroomed flesh. Fang's wings twitched and his hips jerked.

"Max, I'm not…aaah…I'm not kidding..." Fang gasped as the white hot flash of the peak coursed through every muscle and he released his load. He could feel his heartbeat all the way to his pulsing tip and sucked air like a dying fish as it subsided. He looked down at Max and laughed in-between gasps at the shock written across her face. Most of his cum had landed at the top of her left breast and was now dripping down her naked torso.

She quickly collected herself and stood up to wet a washcloth. She carefully cleaned herself off before turning around to kneel in front of him again, wiping a few drops off of his knee. She eyed the drops on his crumpled jeans from yesterday before smirking up at him and kissing his inner-thigh. His softening dick flopped half-heartedly.

"See? Practice. Was that better for you?"

Fang slid down the cabinet front to wrap Max in a crushing bear hug. She laughed and patted the back of his head. "Maybe it's time to do laundry now."

"Only if you _want _me to wear pants." His muffled reply earned him a slap on the shoulder. He responded with a smack to her rear and renewed his grip on her.

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><p><strong>AN: Let me know what you thought! Reviews are food for my soul. =)**


	6. Day Four - Evening

**A/N: You guys (Nola96 and mystery-Guest) are the best, thanks for the feedback! When I started this, I figured I'd write through the whole thing without any real reviews, because people only read the M-rated romances for the smut anyway. But your reviews light the fire in my fingertips and I want to write more for you so badly!**

**Nola96, you're right on track. Max is about to have her turn. Sort of….**

_M-Rated Content this Chapter: I'm tired of giving you spoilers. If you're reading at this point, I'm assuming you're okay with what's going on. Enjoy!_

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><p><strong>Day Four - Evening<strong>

"Screw Itex. Screw 'em. Who needs 'em?" Max slouched forward against her pillow and held out her empty wine glass to Fang.

Fang laughed lazily at Max. "There's no more, Beautiful, you've had half the bottle." He bent towards her and covered her jaw with sloppy kisses.

Max pouted and shook her head, pulling away from him. "And who had the other half, huh?" She leaned back again and let her glass fall to the rug next to the bed. Fang's hungry mouth followed her. "Not bad for a pair of under-aged drinkers."

Fang snorted into her ear and she shoved his face away. "Under-age, my ass. If growing up in a kennel doesn't earn me a free pass to drink on my honeymoon bed with my wife, then what's the point?"

"No point, absolutely no point! There is no point to be pointed at!" Max threw her arms around angrily before leaning heavily against Fang's shoulder. "We, we sure showed 'em, huh? Stuck it to 'em. Grown up and married and having sex without white coats or tests or cameras. They _wish_ they could watch us do it. They'd call it research, the pervs."

Fang frowned. "We haven't _had_ sex yet." He let his head fall slack and stared at her from under his brows with a pout.

Her eyes flashed. "Well, I _said_ I wasn't ready to be in a hurry, and you _said_ that was okay with you, _Fang._"

Fang sat up cross-legged in front of Max and placed his heavy hands over her shoulders and stared at her very, very seriously. "Just facts, Beautiful. I wasn't lying."

"I didn't say you lied. You just implied-"

"That I want you? Always." He leaned forward and grasped her lips in a sloppy kiss. His sickly sweet breath rolled across her parted lips, "I _always _want you."

She tasted of red wine and Fang was suddenly desperate for more of her. His drunken kisses grew more passionate, his tongue danced with hers, and he came up on his knees and leaned over her and his hands roamed hungrily. Max moaned loudly, writhing beneath him and eagerly returning his kisses. Her hands slipped under Fang's soft t-shirt and danced across his hard stomach. Fang slid one hand between her legs and began stroking the supple flesh like he had that morning. Max shivered and leaned forward to bite on his ear and Fang groaned, hips jerking reflexively. He groped her chest roughly and shifted the hand that was between them to the elastic of her pajama pants, fingering the waistband before running his thumb along the inside.

Max pulled back and gasped, pushing his hips away. "What are you doing?"

Fang stilled but kept his thumb in her pants. "I want you. I wanna…I wanna make you happy, Beautiful." He pressed into her soft abdomen gently with his captive thumb and leaned forward to kiss her again, but she turned her head. "Don't you want a turn, Love?"

Her breathing quickened. "I dunno, I dunno what to do."

Fang could feel the beginnings of the wiry hair beneath her pants with his thumb and it was driving him nuts. He pressed his forehead against her cheek and whispered to her neck. "Wanna make you happy. Like, like we were this morning, except now _I _wanna make _you_ happy." He kissed beneath her jaw and licked her lightly. "C'mon, Max. Let me. You're so beautiful, and I wanna touch you so bad." He kissed her jaw again and pressed his body against her harder. "We'll stick it to Itex, the bastards."

Max lay still for another moment before finally turning back to kiss Fang. Her hands slid up to clasp behind his shoulders and her fingers twisted into the hair at the nape of his neck. She still felt warm from the wine and now, warm between her legs from Fang's massage, and suddenly everything seemed just fine. She rolled her hips a little and Fang gripped her hip tighter and she gasped, "Okay," her red wine breath washing over his face. "Okay."

He groaned in anticipation and gripped the edge of her waistband to tug it over her hipbone, but Max's hands flew down to stop him. She squirmed but kissed him again and he hesitated before taking her cue and pulling her pajamas back up. He settled for slipping further into her pants.

Fang's large hand moved down slowly over her mound, following the curve to the moist place between her legs. Max gasped and arched into him, sucking lightly on his neck. Fang felt his heart pumping and his member throbbing as he held his hand against Max, afraid to move. What the hell was he feeling? Where were all the parts? Wasn't he supposed to fit _inside _her somewhere? Cautiously, he began pressing his fingertips against the warm flesh, trying to find _something _that seemed like he should touch it or stroke it or something. Max stopped kissing and lay still beneath him.

"What are you doing?"

Fang just kept poking around, figuring he'd have to hit something good eventually. His calloused fingertips couldn't tell what was what, and Fang couldn't remember anything helpful from that one awkward sex-ed class in high school. _Probably because of the Erasers that showed up next period,_ he thought, and reached further between her legs.

"Shit!" Max jerked away and grabbed his wrist. "Wrong hole, _Fang!_"

"Sorry, I'm sorry, you're Beautiful, I'm sorry…." Fang flushed and resumed his prodding. He could feel two swollen welts running between her legs and pushed down on those softly, running his fingers up and down the way he did over her underwear. Max relaxed some and went back to nibbling on Fang's neck and he figured he must be doing something right.

Slick wetness leaked onto Fang's fingers as he stroked her and his arousal grew tenfold. They lay there together for some minutes. Eventually, Max stopped biting on him and just laid back, eyes closed. Fang hopelessly watched her face, looking for some sort of sign, but her intermittent grimaces did nothing for him.

He paused and leaned down to her. "My fingers are getting tired."

Max frowned, eyes still closed. "I don't know what's supposed to happen. Maybe….maybe I'm broken. Down there."

Fang grunted and switched hands, leaning on his damp palm and sliding his other hand back down between Max's legs. He went right back to rubbing along the swollen parts and kissed Max's jaw line and she squirmed uncomfortably beneath him.

"This isn't working. Maybe we should just-" Fang cut her off with a kiss and searched desperately for something new to try.

He carefully found the slick spot and ran his fingers up her center until he found the soft button at the top. Something clicked then and Fang knew, he just _knew_, that he was supposed to touch her here, so he pressed his fingertip against her spot. And frowned. And did it again. Nothing was happening. Max stopped and winced beneath him.

"Fang?"

He ignored her and decided to try something different. He took hold of the nub of flesh and tried massaging it with his fingers. Max gasped and he felt the thrill of triumph fill his chest and then she opened her mouth.

"Ouch, Fang! Too hard!"

He pressed his lips into a thin line and furrowed his brows, trying to grip her in a different way.

Max jerked under him and pressed her legs together, clamping his hand in place. "Seriously, that hurts, quit!"

Frustration flooded through Fang's thoughts and he felt back down her seam, determined to get this right. His fingers found her nether-lips and tugged, gently, he thought, but Max cried out in pain and grasped his wrist like a vice.

"Stop!"

Fang glared at Max, confused and embarrassed and still feeling tingly from the wine. "I'm figuring it out." He pinched her labia once more and Max whimpered, yanking his hand out of her pants and slapping him full across the face.

"I said _stoppit_, Fang." Max clenched her knees together and curled them up to her chest.

Fang sat up with one hand pressed to his bright red cheek and shook out his black feathers. "Fuck, Max. I've never done this before. I didn't complain when you touched me."

She gaped at him, furious. "That's because you _liked_ it!"

"Yeah, all 30 seconds of it," he spat, "You're no expert, clearly."

"Are you kidding me right now? Of all the… At least cut your damn _nails_ next time, it's like getting felt up by an _Eraser_!"

Fang narrowed his dark eyes and then gestured angrily at the tent in his pants. "And what am I supposed to do about this?"

Max blinked at him furiously, her eyes welling up with tears. "Figure it out yourself, you _pig._" She threw herself back down onto her pillow and yanked the sheets up to her chin.

"Fine." Fang grunted dismissively and fell back on the other side of the bed, staring up at the ceiling with a scowl.

Max sucked in little half-breaths and watched the tears roll down the side of her nose. She was tired and still a little bit drunk and her private parts _hurt_, really, actually hurt. She knew, of course she knew, that he wasn't trying to hurt her, but the sharp pain in such a vulnerable place made her feel naked, even though she wasn't. She wanted him to hold her, just hold her, and let it be okay.

She rolled over towards his stiff form and watched him scowl at the place where the ceiling met the wall. Her voice cracked when she finally spoke, "Fang?"

She reached out to touch his shoulder and he noisily turned over, hunched around his ignored erection, presenting his broad back and tightly folded wings to her.

Max's face crumpled and she gasped a little sob. She rolled back over to her side of the bed and made a cocoon out of her wings, curling up beneath them with her arms wrapped around her knees. She just couldn't stop the damn tears.

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><p><strong>AN: Rejection hurts, yeah? Poor Max. Poor Fang. Morning is coming, and it'll get better. Please let me know what you think with that handy review button below!**


	7. Day Five - Morning

**A/N: So Max and Fang had a pretty rough night. I didn't want to make you wait too long for them to make up, I left them on such a sad note. This chapter is kind of a character piece more than anything else, since Fang has some serious ground to recover before he can get anywhere with Max, but it's necessary and still full of sweet moments between Max and Fang. Things pick up again (pretty awesomely) in the next chapter, but this one has to happen first.**

**Thank you to Nola96, Help Me I'm Shipping, zroc, and assorted guests for your encouragement. It makes me excited to keep writing for you!**

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><p><strong>Day Five - Morning<strong>

Fang's mouth tasted of sleep and stale wine. It was gross. He sat up, half-tangled in the sheets. He ran his hand down his face, swung his legs off the bed, and leaned forward to stand, idly scratching at his morning wood and wincing at the tenderness there. Arms and wings reached wildly in a lazy stretch before he turned around and caught sight of Max, still hidden from the world by a wing wrapped around her, the other half-out on the bed behind her. Memories of the night before came flying back like a punch in the gut. The way his wife curled protectively around herself made her look small and alone and he felt remorse like a rock in the pit of his stomach.

Fang frowned and turned resolutely into the kitchen.

Max awoke some time later to the sound of running water and drawers slamming shut. She groaned at the nasty taste in her mouth and drew in tighter around herself. She woke for the second time when a pan clattered on the stovetop and the vent fan fell silent.

Fang came back from the kitchen and let out a heavy sigh when he saw Max holding herself rigidly still beneath the covers. She was unfairly good at plenty of things, but pretending to be asleep was not one of them. He started to push her hair out of her face and she jerked back, knocking his hand aside with the bony edge of her wing.

"_Don't touch me_."

He drew back and observed her solemnly. Dappled wings shielded her from his gaze and she drew her knees up to her chest, nearly disappearing beneath her feathers. Wordlessly, Fang turned and strode back into the kitchen, piled his work onto a wicker tray, and padded back towards the bed on bare feet. He kneeled on the mattress and shuffled closer to the feathery lump to set the tray down next to her. He sat back on his heels and waited.

A few seconds later, a whisper sifted out from between her feathers.

"I know what you're up to, and it's not gonna work."

She shifted uncomfortably under his stare and his silence. She groaned angrily and sat up to glare at him. "You can't just _buy_ your way back onto my good side." She grimaced as she folded her stiff wings against her back and blinked heavily.

Fang's eyebrows rose when he saw her puffy eyelids and the dried tear tracks running crusty rivers down her cheeks. His heart clenched.

"That's not what I'm doing."

"Oh, yeah?" She sneered at him and gestured to the tray. "You've got _all _my favorite breakfast foods. Don't tell me this isn't some kind of bribe."

"It's an apology."

"Psh, _right_. I know a bribe when I see one." She scowled at the bacon before snatching at a broken piece and shoving it into her mouth.

"Won't you let me fix this?"

She just grabbed another piece and refused to meet his eyes.

Fang sighed and stared at the ceiling and listened to her crunch her way through the bacon. When he heard the fork and knife clinking against the plate, he looked back at her. "Look, Max, I-"

"You _hurt_ me."

She looked up at him with the widest brown eyes and Fang wanted to crawl into a pit and die.

"I'm sorry."

"You made me feel _naked_."

"I know. I'm so, so sorry, Max." He watched her fight to control her breathing. "Last night sucked. I suck. You're everything." He ran his tongue across his lips and watched her eyes threaten to brim over with tears. "You're crying."

Her nostrils flared and she stared fixedly at the cluster of grapes. He reached out to catch a tear before it fell. She chewed on her lip, probably hard enough to break the skin, and he pulled it away from her teeth with his thumb. He cupped her cheek tenderly, bent his head, and took a deep breath.

"You and I haven't done any of this before. It's like…like when Jeb busted us out of the School and we didn't know how to be free because we'd never had freedom before. It was insanely basic, but we still needed to learn it." He looked at her from beneath his brows. "This is another slice of that freedom, and we're going to learn it. I'll probably mess up again. Because I have no friggin' clue how to do any of this. But you're the one I want to learn it with." He took a staggering breath. "I'm sorry I hurt you. That's mostly because I'm clueless. Like I said, I want to get better at that. But I'm more sorry that I was too drunk and stubborn to stop when you asked me the first time."

"Or the second time."

He nodded once. "Or the second time. That's worse because I freaking know better. I just….wanted so badly to figure it out. To figure _you_ out." His lips twisted in a smirk and he rubbed her chin with his thumb. "You're still a mystery to me, Max."

She looked up at him with wide eyes for the second time, and this time, with fear. The whisper clicked softly on her tongue. "What if you can't figure me out?"

He frowned.

"What if I'm broken?"

"Oh, _Max_." He pushed the tray aside and crawled over to her. He wrapped his arms around her firmly and she pressed her face against his black t-shirt. It reeked of bacon grease. They breathed together, rocking back and forth, and he grazed his lips against her ear. "What happened to all that talk about needing practice, and about not letting Itex have one more minute of our lives? Huh?"

He pulled back and looked at her seriously. "I say, fuck 'em. I chose _you_." She pulled her lips into some sort of smile and Fang beamed down at her.

Max scrunched her nose and sighed and pressed her forehead against his shoulder. "I know you didn't mean to hurt me. I knew it last night, too." His hands paced up and down her back soothingly. "And I guess I forget that you're as dumb about this stuff as I am." She curved her neck up to kiss him gently on the Adam's apple. "So maybe…maybe we could try again. Without the wine."

He nodded firmly in agreement. "Without the wine."

She pressed her face against the warmth in the crook of his neck and he hugged her close again. He glanced at the breakfast tray and kissed her neck. "And I'm sorry about the toast. You don't have to eat that part if you don't want to."

Max reached under his arm to poke gingerly at one blackened piece with pursed lips. "Yeah, I'll probably pass on that."

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><p>Max peered at Fang over the top of her sunglasses. The rain had finally packed up and gone home and she and Fang were sunbathing in the thread-bare beach chairs they found in a closet. Well, Max was sunbathing. Fang had been staring at his laptop screen for the past hour.<p>

"Whatcha lookin' at?"

His eyes flicked to her and back to the screen. "Nothing."

Max leaned over the arm of her chair to look over his shoulder and he angled the laptop away. He raised one eyebrow and she leaned back into her own chair.

"Whatever, I'll read your blog after you post it."

"S'not my blog."

"Oh, yeah?" She leaned over again and he met her with a kiss, shutting his laptop between them.

"Seriously, Fang? What's so bad that I can't see?"

He shook his head slightly, face infuriatingly impassive. "It's a secret."

"Is that any way to start a marriage, _dear_?" she deadpanned. He smirked and kissed her on the cheek, lingering for a second to breathe in her skin and sunscreen.

"Fine. It's not a secret. It's a surprise."

He stood up and trailed his fingers across her bare shoulders, laptop clasped against his hip. "I'm gonna head inside." He bent to kiss her cheek once more and his palm brushed against her flat stomach before he turned, grabbed his chair, and shuffled back to the bungalow through the sand.

Max rolled her eyes and settled back down into her chair and smiled under the hot sun.

One Fang-less half hour later, Max stretched and turned towards the bungalow. She was bored. She gathered up her sandy towel, her aluminum chair, and the blue cooler they'd lugged out there and grumbled all the way to the porch where she let everything fall in a heap. She heard something bang inside and crept through the door cautiously.

"Fang?"

He grunted from in the kitchen and she heard a cabinet slam shut and a drawer pull open. She walked in on him and about a dozen tea lights scattered across the counter.

"What are you doing?"

He didn't even look up at her. "All of these are unscented."

"Okaaay?" She stepped back as he pushed past her with cupped hands full of candles. She followed him into the bathroom and was engulfed with the thick aroma of coconuts and lime. Her eyebrows shot up. The massive tub was full and the jets were running and Fang was stiffly laying the candles around the edge, lighting them as he went.

"What is this?"

He lit the last tea light and turned around. She watched his gaze slide up her sandy body before he met her eyes and offered a half-smile. "It's for you."

"Uh…why?"

He just shook his head and turned around to pull fresh towels out of the cabinet. He pushed them into her arms and his fingers grazed against hers. She shivered at the shock and offered him a tentative smile. He kissed her upper lip softly and touched her bare belly, her hips, her lower back, raising goose bumps across her skin with a feather-light touch. He pulled back and held her gaze. His thumbs lingered on her hip bones.

"I'm going to fly out to pick us up some dinner. I'll shower when I get back." Max could see the sand still crusted in the crease of his elbow and around his neck.

"Are you sure? I could clean up quick and come with you. Gimme a chance to figure out where to go for the summit thing tomorrow."

Fang shook his head and gripped her elbow, turning her gently towards the drawn bath. "You enjoy this. I'll be back soon." He kissed the side of her neck with hot lips and then Max heard the bathroom door click shut.

She wasn't exactly sure what just happened. Maybe Fang was still trying to apologize? But they had talked through it just a few hours ago and it was water under the bridge, Max told herself. Clearly a mistake, won't happen again, and _definitely_ no more wine anytime soon.

She sighed and set the towels on the toilet lid. She stripped out of her sandy bathing suit and climbed carefully into the tub, holding her sun-streaked hair back with one hand. She moaned in delight and shivered at the stab of ice-heat that raced from her submerged toes up her leg. The heat engulfed her and she sunk down to her chin, letting the water jets keep her arms afloat. She let her eyes slip shut. _It would probably be okay, _she thought, _if Fang took his sweet time coming back with dinner._

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><p><strong>AN: Hmmm, what is Fang up to?** **Guess you'll have to wait to see. Bwahaha!**

**Next chapter will go up tomorrow evening, I think. Because I love it and I want you to see it soon. I guess that means I'd better hurry up and figure out what they'll do on Day Six.**

**Oh, and review, please! You all are wonderful!**


	8. Day Five - Evening

**A/N: Thank you to the moon and back for the reviews on the previous chapter. It lights a fire in my belly. I loved writing this chapter. I hope you love reading it! Time to see what Fang has up his sleeve.**

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><p><strong>Day Five - Evening<strong>

Max was finishing toweling herself off when she heard the front door slam shut. She threw on some sweats and a tank top and wrung her hair out one last time before opening the bathroom door with a grin.

"Hey there, handsome."

Fang looked up at her from behind the kitchen counter where he had laid out enough takeout for six people. He smiled awkwardly before stiffly walking over to meet her with one hand clasped behind his back. He stopped and blinked down at her once before thrusting his fistful of wilting pink hibiscus flowers at her.

Max opened her mouth and closed it again, eyeing one petal as it detached itself and fell to the floor, leaving the stamen bare.

Fang let his arm drop and another petal fell. He sighed and rolled his eyes a little. "They looked a lot better before they got up in the air. I'll go toss 'em."

"No, don't." Max took them and smiled softly. "I like them. I want them." She rummaged around and ended up with a red plastic cup to stuff them in.

A smile played across Fang's lips and he turned towards the bathroom. "Whatever you say, Beautiful."

Fang disappeared to take his shower and Max carried the takeout containers to the TV room and ransacked the cupboards for plates and napkins. Fang reappeared 10 minutes later, clean and wearing loose sweats and a t-shirt, and tried to pick a movie while Max sorted the food.

"Aw, _yes_, I've been craving burgers…" She scrunched all the empty bags together and pushed them to the edge of the coffee table. She saw Fang hunched over the small movie cabinet and sighed. "Fang, there are only like ten movies to choose from, just pick one."

She wiggled herself down into the couch cushions and happily ate her way through her three bacon double-cheeseburgers, plus fries, plus drinks, while the movie played. Fang sat unbelievably close and she eyed his messy shower hair since it was, you know, dripping on her shoulder. _Unfairly sexy,_ she thought, and wiped her fingers clean.

They settled in to watch the rest of the movie. It wasn't long before Max was lying on top of Fang with her head on his chest. He smelled gloriously of aftershave and she pressed her face into his shoulder in-between complaining about the stupidity of the people on screen.

Fang lazily drew patterns over her arms and across her hipbones and she could feel his breath in her hair. Halfway through, she suddenly felt flushed and sat up to wriggle out of her tank top, mumbling about the heat. She felt Fang watch her strip down to her cotton sports bra and fell back against him without meeting his eyes. He shifted to draw slow sketches across her stomach.

She gestured angrily at the screen. "That's so dumb! They could've totally both fit on that piece of wood. She'd be warmer, and he wouldn't have to _die_." She twisted her head to look at Fang. "If we're ever stranded on a sinking ship, don't you dare do something stupid like sacrifice yourself for me. It's inane."

His lips twisted in a smirk. "We've got wings, Max."

Max huffed. "Okay, but if we _didn't_ have wings, or we were both grounded with injuries, I'd pull you up to hang out with me on that hunk of dead ship. None of this dying-so-the-other-can-live stupidity." She folded her hands across her stomach. Fang slid his warm palm over them, twining his fingers with hers. His nose pressed into her scalp.

"You smell so good."

Max tugged on his fingers playfully and ran her thumb over his knuckles. "Please forward all compliments to whoever decided I oughtta take a real bath. Whoa, wait up, hold the phone!" She sat up halfway and turned his palm around in her hand. "Is this….did you….get a _manicure?_"

She twisted around to straddle Fang's stomach, still inspecting his hand. The roughness was gone and his nails were clipped short and actually shone a little in the light from the flatscreen. She looked at him incredulously. "Fang, your hands are softer than a baby's butt. What is this?"

He shrugged and turned to stare at the movie that he'd ignored all night. "You said I should cut my nails."

"I did?"

He turned back to her with a stare that made her toes curl. "Yes."

"Oh." Max paused in thought before her eyebrows shot up in realization. "Oh!...Oh." She chewed on her lip nervously and shifted as Fang sat up beneath her.

"Hey." He breathed against her neck and pulled back to watch her face. "It's okay. Baby steps, right?"

Max wrinkled her nose and grabbed one elbow, subconsciously pulling her thighs together. "I just…Last night was so bad. I know we talked about it and everything, but I just don't want it to be like that again. And anyway, what if I'm right and I just don't _work _that way?"

Her husband watched her carefully and then slid out from beneath her to move purposefully towards the bed. He rifled through a shopping bag and pulled out two sandy brown candles, setting one on each bedside table and lighting them carefully. He briefly fiddled with his laptop until quiet music wafted from the speakers and half-closed the screen to dim the brightness. He made his way back to Max and reached out to smooth down the ruffled feathers at the top of her wing.

"This is already better than last night, you know."

Max watched him warily and he kissed her forehead.

"We're not drunk."

Max mumbled something about never again and rolled her eyes before meeting his gaze.

"And I _did_ cut my nails." He pushed his palm to hers and wrapped his fingers around her hand. She laughed breathlessly.

"Thank God."

"And besides," he pulled her up and tugged her towards the bed, "apparently it's normal for a woman to have more trouble than a man when trying to get aroused. Especially when she's trying something new and already feeling nervous about it."

Fang threw himself onto the middle of the bed and tugged on Max's arm until she sat in front of him, her back to him. He dug his thumbs into the tense muscles where her wings met her back and she groaned.

She looked lazily at the candle on her side table and squinted at the 'Desert Rain' label. "You went out and bought scented candles?"

Fang's warm hands slid down to her ribs and his thumbs worked on her back while his fingers trailed lightly over the clothed sides of her breasts. "Preparation."

Max wrinkled her eyebrows. "With ambiguously-scented candles?"

"It's not ambiguous. It says 'Desert Rain' right on the front." He worked his thumbs lower and she arched into him. He squeezed her hips and worked hard at a knot. "Anyway, men are wired to respond to visual stimulation, but women need to be stimulated both emotionally and physically to become aroused. And I didn't know what that meant for you, so yeah, there's music and candles." Fang pressed into her abdomen with careful fingers.

Max sat up and laughed incredulously. "_That's_ what you were doing on your laptop! You were doing research!" She barked a laugh and bit her lip when his hands trailed lower, running up and down the outside of her thighs over her loose sweat pants.

She felt his hands still and he paused. "I want to do better at this, Max. So, yeah. Laugh if you want. I did some research."

He held her waist gently and she leaned back against his chest. "So, the bath, too? And the dumb romantic movie? And my poor, sad little flowers?"

"All of it. It's all for you." He slid his hands back down to cup her ass gently and gave her a firm squeeze. "I wasn't sure what would help you, so I did it all. I want to try again, Max. Let me learn this part of you." He drew his hands around to the tops of her thighs, fingers delicately brushing towards the inside. Max gasped and pressed harder against his chest. His touch drew rivers of flame across her body and she felt all his touches all at once, a whole day's worth of random contact suddenly remembered and building heat in her chest.

"You'll stop if I ask?" She gently touched his wrist and guided him between her lean thighs. He took the cue and rubbed his palm across her firmly before cupping his fingers around her and bringing his other hand up to clutch at her breast.

"Scout's honor."

"Okay," she breathed. She tried to relax against Fang but he shuffled out from behind her. He gently tugged her wings away from her shoulders and pushed her down onto her back. He hovered over her and kissed her tenderly, his lips making soft noises against hers. Her head hit the mattress and Fang deepened the kiss and his hands were touching her everywhere. She heard him pant into her mouth and moaned into him. The fire spread from her heart to her lungs and down into her stomach.

The small ache that was building grew tenfold when Fang slid the elastic waist of her pants down over her hips. He left her panting on the bed and sat back on his heels to peel her pajamas off of her legs. He squeezed her thighs and kissed one knee before leaning back down over her to kiss her mouth again. She sighed and his kisses moved to her chin, down her neck, over her bra where he copped a feel. His nose dragged across her belly and he pecked the inside of her hipbone, giving Max a jolt. Her eyes flashed open and she saw him disappear over the side of the bed.

She cleared her throat nervously. "What are you doing?"

He was kneeling at the edge of her bed and grasped her calves tightly to pull her closer. He looked up at her from between her knees. He slowly kissed one knee while staring into her eyes, and then once more further up her thigh. "Max." His eyelids fluttered shut and his nostrils flared and he sat still a moment. His eyes opened and he stood up to bend over her for another kiss. When he spoke again, it was to plead directly into her lips. "I want to look at you. So that I can see what I'm doing."

She kissed him back slowly, languidly, and his long fingers slid down her sides to tug at her panties. She gasped shakily and grabbed his arms. He pulled back to look at her and waited while she rubbed circles on the soft skin on the underside of his wrists, mind racing behind wide brown eyes.

And then she was kissing him again, pushing his hands down her body and letting him pull her underwear along with them. He followed the undergarments down, kissing her chest and her sternum and her hips again, pulling her panties past her knees and then all the way off. He stared into her eyes with an intensity that made her breath falter before wrapping his hands around each of her thighs and looking down between her legs. Max stared furiously at the ceiling, heart pounding in her chest like a thousand sparrows in a wire cage. She wasn't sure if she was embarrassed or terrified or in ecstasy, but she couldn't seem to catch her breath.

She must have lain still like that, just breathing, for at least two minutes, with Fang silent and ostensibly still examining her untouched genitals. She jumped in surprise when he finally pressed his palm to her hot sex.

"Is this okay?"

She nodded and forced herself to take a deep breath. "Peachy keen."

She bit her lip and felt him start to explore, slowly and gently, pushing and pulling and prodding with his smooth fingers. She could feel her arousal, the full swelling and the heat between her legs, and Fang lightly stroked the swollen bits, making the heat grow.

He rested his sandpaper cheek against the inside of her thigh. She felt his hot breath wash across her and shivered, letting out a little moan. He chuckled.

"Max?"

She moaned again, breathless. "Huh, yeah?"

"Do you, uh…. I mean...have you touched yourself before?"

"Uh, what?" She blinked over at the flickering candle, distracted by Fang's face so close to her innermost parts. His smooth knuckles brushed against her tantalizingly. "I wash everything in the shower, so, yeah. Sure."

She felt more than heard his quiet hum. "C'mere." He straightened up on his knees and reached for her hand. He dragged her down her abdomen, over her mound, and carefully placed her splayed fingers across herself. She gasped.

Fang covered her fingers with his own and shifted her touch across the shiny, reddened welts, her slick center, the tiny, fleshy nub where everything met, all covered in a light dusting of wiry hair.

"It's so wet!"

Fang laughed lightly and kissed her thigh. "Yup. That's good." He shifted her fingers again and she gasped at the sensation.

"Here. Touch here." Fang guided her middle finger to dip into the slick well and then crooked it, pushing her fingertip up her slit to run against the smooth underside of her clitoris, and then pressing gently under the hood onto the hidden bundle of nerves. Max gasped and held her finger there before relaxing it again, her hand splayed lazily across her sex.

Fang pushed her fingers apart and lightly pulled the soft skin around the nub, rolling it back and forth between his fingers. "This part is your clitoris. It's where you feel-"

"Everything." Max groaned and felt her stomach clench. "I feel _everything._"

"Okay. Everything." He rolled it softly between his fingers. "It's got way more feeling than any other part of your body, but you can stimulate it like this, through the skin that covers it, without hurting it. And this-" He released her and slid one teasing finger down her center, his knuckle brushing against her ring finger, "this is where I enter you."

Max let her eyes roll back and eyelids flutter. Fang tugged on her thickening bud again and pressed it to one side, covering it with one of her fingers and then with one of his, side-by-side. He guided their touch across it again and again. Her hips bucked and she gasped.

"Can we…can you do that harder?"

Fang paused and she just about wanted to smack him. "Harder? I don't want to hurt you."

"Please, Fang?"

He grunted and resumed his rubbing with increased pressure. Max moaned embarrassingly and felt her heart pumping liquid desire through her veins. Her hand went slack across her vulva and she could feel herself swelling, feel her heartbeat beneath her skin, feel Fang's fingertips pushing beneath her palm as he rubbed her.

"More," she whimpered and he picked up the pace, gliding furiously back and forth across the side of her clit and pushing her hand to the side. And then there was an ember glowing in her center, traveling up her slit like a lit fuse, and her hips bucked and Fang faltered and she felt the ember die.

She lay there gasping and threw her head to the side, frustrated. "Fang, I need more." She wrapped her fingers around herself and whimpered when she felt her wetness smeared across her pussy.

Fang grasped her knees and breathed. "You smell so good."

Max choked a little laugh. "You said that already."

Fang laughed, too. "No, down here. This is different." He leaned forward and kissed the back of her hand and she felt his hair brush against her thighs. She heard him breathe deeply as he kissed her knuckles, one by one, and she felt that stubborn ember start to glow again.

"Maaaaaax." He kissed the edge of her finger and his chin brushed against one of her swollen welts. "Max, move your hand."

Hesitant, she withdrew her palm. Fang pressed his lips to her where her knuckle had been a moment before and she whimpered with desire. He kissed against her over and over, dragging his lips across her most sensitive place.

Max tried to remember to breathe and threw her head to the side against the comforter. She cried out softly when Fang's lips pressed over her clit. He sampled her with his tongue and then pulled her into his lips, rolling her nub between them and lapping at the tiny, icy-hot pearl of flesh with his tongue. The fire lit again, roiling in the pit of her stomach and blossoming out across her thighs.

Fang released her and breathed deeply. His hot breath felt cool against her slick center. She shivered when she felt his warm tongue lap at her. She moaned breathlessly as he licked around her nether lips. His tastes stoked the bonfire between her legs and she flexed her toes in pleasure.

Max drifted through hills and valleys of bliss as Fang continued his ministrations, and all of a sudden it wasn't enough.

"Fang?"

He grunted into her slick folds and her words got caught in her throat. She reached for his head and hooked her fingertips under his jaw, pulling him up just slightly.

"Here. Here again. Please."

She could feel his smirk. "Oh, yeah? You liked that?" He kissed her bundle of nerves again before rolling her between his lips, licking and nipping and kissing in random patterns.

"God, yes," she pleaded. Her body glistened with a thin sheen of sweat. Her frantic panting drowned out the soft smacks from Fang and the fire between her legs built higher and higher. "Ah- ah, Fang," she whispered and he bobbed his head against her, sucking on her clit and licking all around.

And then the fire turned to ice and the world went a little bit grey and Max moaned luxuriously through parted lips as her body melted beneath her. Fang's soft mouth suddenly felt rough and she pushed him away from her clenching pussy.

Fang licked his lips and tried to catch his breath as he rested his cheek against Max's slick thigh. He smiled to himself as he watched her swollen, dripping core clench with each pulse of her orgasm. He carefully pressed his palm flat against her and felt her heartbeat hammering away underneath her skin.

When he heard her breathing slow and the spasms grew further apart, he leaned in for one last kiss (and one more taste) before climbing up on the bed to lie next to Max. Her face was slack and her eyes were shut. When he pressed in to kiss the corner of her lips, she smiled.

Fang watched her eyelids flutter and she looked up at him through half-lidded eyes. "Mm," she sighed once. "Mm," and again, and rolled over to curl against his chest, pulling her legs back up onto the bed.

"I did good this time, huh?"

"Shh," she pressed a finger to his lips and cuddled against him, growing still.

Fang smoothed her hair back and kissed her forehead and lay with her while she slept. "Goodnight, Max."

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><p><strong>AN: Review below. =)**


	9. Day Six - Morning

**A/N: Sorry for the short break. A week and a half isn't too terrible, except that my last three updates came within days of each other, so I feel neglectful. Reason A) I had some traveling to do for work, and B) I broke my rule and posted all of that without having written ahead. But I'm back now and am ready for Max and Fang to move on a little bit more! I've got all of Day 6 hashed out and mostly written and I think I'll give you 3 shorter chapters of it instead of 2 so that I can update faster.**

**Thanks to everyone who took the time to review up to this point. Your words make me eager to give you more to read! I can't believe how much traffic this story is getting but I'm honored and excited and eager to finish it.**

**Day Six - Morning**

Fang jolted awake when the alarm went off at dark-thirty in the morning. His heart pounded and his eyes blinked wide and he sucked in a harsh mouthful of air. Instant wakefulness was one of the habits that he still couldn't shake from _before, _back when they were experiments with Erasers breathing down their necks or on the run from M-Geeks and evil scientists. It was useful then, but now it was just an aggravating reminder of how much his entire childhood sucked.

He let out his gasp and grunted and nudged Max, who clearly didn't suffer from the same problem. She moaned tiredly and blinked with one eye over in the direction of the buzzing alarm. Fang nudged her again and she yawned, wincing when her jaw cracked. She stretched across his chest to hit the snooze button before collapsing bodily on top of him and letting her wings fall slack.

Fang rolled his eyes and smiled in the dark, wrapping his wiry arms tightly around Max's waist to roll them onto their sides. He refolded her wings and molded her back to his front, searching out the soft flesh of her shoulder with his lips and holding her chastely around her bare stomach where her t-shirt had ridden up. He grinned against her sleep-warmed flesh and remembered how she let him touch her the night before, cradling her half-naked form in the stillness while she fell back asleep.

When the alarm went off for the second time, Max woke up to Fang's sticky morning kisses as he sucked diligently against her neck.

"Mmm, hey, there."

She craned her head around to look at him and he kissed her mouth hard, running his warm hands over her ribs and pushing her t-shirt up further before nuzzling his way back into the crook of her neck with his stubbly chin. She smiled contentedly until the rest of the room came into focus.

_BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP_

Max groaned and swatted at the alarm clock to make it shut up before making herself sit up all the way, trying to blink sleep out of her eyes. Her hair made an impressive series of knots along one side of her head. Fang sat up behind her and she immediately slumped back against him. His kisses resumed, languid and unhurried and smacking softly. He mumbled into her skin, "You've really gotta get up." His rough mouth sucked against her neck to leave a bruise. Max melted under his touch, sighing lightly when one hand reached up to cup her breast beneath her cotton t-shirt. She lifted her hand to cradle his cheek gently and hold him to her.

"Mmm, but I'm happy here."

Fang's breath shot out in a silent laugh and he licked at her bruised skin. "You've got that meeting thing." His voice was low and gravelly and Max wished more than anything that she didn't have to speak at the CSM summit on the main island. Even if it _was_ payment for their stay in M. Pierpont's ridiculously awesome, private, secluded bungalow.

She groaned and let her head fall to the other side so Fang could suck on a new spot. "Don' wanna. Too tired."

He nipped her lightly, just under her ear, and growled playfully. "I bet can fix that." He dragged his nose in a long, hot line from her ear to the place where her wings met her back and then back up again to her hairline, his heavy breaths washing over her and making her shiver. The hand holding her breast shifted to palm her roughly while the other snaked down between her naked thighs towards her naked heat. Max arched back at his touch and gasped at the adrenaline and desire coursing through her body in an unsteady echo of last night. She didn't feel like a sleep-zombie anymore.

Her small moan got caught somewhere in the middle of her throat when Fang's fingers found her tender center and suddenly there was heat and anticipation and then-

_Brrrrrzt. Brrrrrzt. Brrrrrzt.___Her cell phone danced on the dresser top.

Fang's fingers stilled and Max whined like a child, pushing Fang's arms away and sliding off the edge of the bed to grab the phone. She curled her toes into the carpet and hit 'answer.'

"Huh, yeah? Uh huh. Yeah, yep, I'm still on." She slurred her way through a wide yawn. "Yeah, okay. Okay, later." She dropped the cell back onto the dresser with a clatter and pulled out a drawer to rummage for clean underwear. She looked over at Fang where he was still kneeling on the bed. His eyes flashed up to meet hers from where he had been staring longingly at her heart-shaped ass. She laughed a little before mumbling, "Sorry," and scrunched her nose with another sigh before heading towards the bathroom.

Fang fell back on the bed and shut his eyes. He rubbed his thumb against his slick forefingers and closed his eyes contentedly, replaying last night in his head. How soft she was. How responsive her most secret places were to his touch. How she smelled like pure desire. How she _tasted,_ tangy and tart and a little bit salty. He felt his morning wood firm up and wiped his fingers on the corner of his shirt.

He heard the shower kick on and fixed his eyes on the cracked bathroom door. Max's voice drifted out with the steam. "Hey, hey Fang? Can you do me a favor?" She paused for a reply. He stared expectantly, knowing she would take his silence for assent. "Can you make sure my speaking notes are in my bag? I think I left them on the counter." Fang pushed up on his elbows and ran his hands through his bed head. His bones creaked when he hit the floor and he grimaced. He readjusted himself and scanned the room for Max's scribbled notebook before moving to search in the common area.

When Max emerged from the bathroom in a puff of steam, Fang was on the bed again, wearing only a pair of low-slung jeans and typing on his laptop and looking bored. She eyed him appreciatively from his scruffy chin to the hard planes of his exposed lower abdomen before turning to get dressed in the stiff, professional sort of clothes that international summits required.

She glanced over her shoulder every few seconds but didn't catch him watching her. She frowned. She kind of wanted him to. To watch her. She turned back to the floor-length mirror and pulled up her black pencil skirt over her fresh underwear with a grunt, wiggling her hips uncomfortably.

"It feels like I'm still wet."

Fang's eyes flicked to his wife and back to his screen, lips twitching in a smirk. "It's from last night." He wet his lips with a flick of his tongue and glanced at her again. "Leftovers."

"Seriously? And my shower didn't take care of this, why?" She rubbed her thighs together and hopped a little, trying to get comfortable but only succeeding in spreading her arousal further into the damp cotton. She huffed and shoved her arms into the sleeves of a button-up blouse before rolling her shoulders to let her wings through the tailored slits in the back. When she looked up from matching the first button with the right hole, Fang was looming behind her with dark wings spread.

"I'll do it." His gravelly morning voice rumbled in her ear and she let him slide his hands around her waist. He pressed himself against the entirety of her and deftly buttoned down her shirt with swift fingers. When he reached the end, he carefully tucked the hem into her skirt, working his way around her waist and pausing at her sides. He held her firmly and growled a little, bending to tease her earlobe with his teeth.

Max felt herself melting all over again as she watched him snuggle up against her in the mirror. She could smell the spicy, masculine musk of fresh deodorant mingling with the heady aroma of _Fang._ She slid her hands over his, smiling when he tightened his grip on her. She watched his dark wings flex and relax, flex and relax, as he laved the smooth spot behind her ear with his tongue. Just as his eyes fell shut in concentration, Max's popped wide open.

"Fang!"

He pulled back to see her face, confused.

"Lookit what you did!" She leaned towards the mirror and her fingers flew to her neck, peppered with soft red and purple marks and one big, dark bruise on her left shoulder where he had started. "I've got…I've got _hickeys _everywhere!"

He shrugged and smirked. He bent to kiss her again but she pushed him away with a huff. A crease appeared between his eyebrows. "I thought you liked it?"

Max thought that she kind of did, but she held her tongue and rolled her eyes anyway. "It's not about that. I've got to go stand in front of a few hundred people and explain how terrible Itex was, and I've got to look _professional_. What will the CSM say?"

"That they should have let you enjoy your honeymoon in peace." He kissed her firmly on the cheek before straightening behind her and pressing his cheek against hers. His dark eyes bore into her in that way that made her stomach clench with want. "Something to remember me by."

Max fiddled with her damp hair to hide the worst of the bruises and felt herself flush. "What, you're afraid that hours of lectures will make me forget my new husband?" Her hands smoothed down the sides of her blouse and she grinned toothily at him in the mirror. "Especially after what he did to me last night, huh?"

Fang's lips twisted in a smirk and Max laughed, satisfied. She was just reaching for her comb when she heard his quiet request.

"I dare you to go commando."

"What?" She paused and turned to Fang. He stared at her blankly, coolly, infuriatingly passive.

"Leave your underwear here."

She deadpanned, exasperated, "I know what commando means." She knew what it meant, but she'd never done it. Max held his stare and watched his lips twitch with the mirth he was trying to hide. She rubbed her thighs together again, breath faltering when she felt the wetness there.

Fang's devious grin finally broke through. "Are you part chicken and didn't tell me?" He wiggled his eyebrows and idly placed his long fingers on her polyester-sheathed hips. The way he was looking at her lit a fire in Max and her tender center only felt wetter. "I want to know you're thinking about me. All day."

He leaned in to brush his lips softly against hers, teasing and just barely touching. They exchanged shallow breaths for what felt like eons before Max finally felt him take her upper lip gently between his teeth. She pulled his full lower lip into her waiting mouth and tried to step into him but his hands on her hips kept her at bay. He grinned briefly at her growl of frustration before deepening the kiss, massaging his fingertips into the fleshy part of her ass and charging the unfairly large space between them with the most delicious kind of promise.

Max wilted beneath him before pulling back with a gasp. The cell phone was vibrating on the hard dresser top again. She grabbed the phone and tried vainly to swat Fang away from where he had buried himself beneath the hair on her neck while she answered, "Y'ello? Oh, hey Brigid!" She clamped Fang's jaw between her ear and her shoulder when his hot breath tickled her. "Yeah, yeah, I'm on my way. Save me a seat?" She squealed at Fang's tongue in her ear and swatted at him again, spitting out a whispered 'quiddit!' between her teeth. "Oh? Yeah, yeah, I'll tell him. See you soon. Kay. Bye."

She spun on Fang and pecked his still-puckered his lips. "Brigid says hi." He just stared at her pointedly and drew his fingers maddeningly across her lower abdomen, reminding her of his dare. "And I'm _not _part chicken."

Fang smirked and wet his lips and Max's heart raced. She made herself grin fiercely up at his lust-filled stare and slipped out of his grasp. "Fine. Have it your way." She held his gaze brazenly as she reached up underneath her skirt to pull her panties down to her ankles. She grabbed them up without breaking eye contact and slingshotted them into Fang's face, laughing when he took a step back with wide eyes. "Now you have something to remember _me_ by."

She spun out of the bedroom before he could say anything and grabbed her shoulder bag from the console table. She shoved her low-heel flats and sport coat into her backpack for safe-keeping and slipped out the front door. A quick search through her bag revealed her dog-eared speaking notebook placed neatly in the front compartment and a small smile broke across her face. She rubbed her thighs together one more time and bit her lip at the nakedness there before taking off for the mainland.

**A/N: A tiny break from extended lemons. I'm sure Fang and Max are just as disappointed as you are. Don't worry, it's a honeymoon, they won't end their day without some play. **

**Let me know what you think. =)**


	10. Day Six - CSM Summit

**A/N: Thanks Nola96 and MaximumRider99 for reviewing my last chapter, and for appreciating the sugar that goes into the lemonade. I've got hazy ideas for where to take the story from here, but for some reason I'm having trouble putting my thoughts into words. I have no plans to stop writing, we'll just call it writer's block. I'm writing every day, but it's like molasses right now. Thanks to Nola96 for also reviewing my oneshot, Fang's Solace. I'm really really fond of it, I keep rereading the thing to look for edits since I wrote it in one night, but even **_**I **_**get emotionally caught up in Fang's pain. Anyway, I'm ready to have that motivation back for LYS!**

**This chapter's all Max. We'll get Fang back next time. Hopefully it's amusing?**

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><p><strong>Day Six - CSM Summit<strong>

Max always felt awkward flying in business clothes. Her combat boots and bomber jacket worked way better in the air than a stiff pencil skirt and starched collar. She didn't even bother with the shoes or the jacket; they were kept in her backpack with her notes until she could land again.

She felt even more awkward when she landed under the curious stares of whoever happened to be nearby. You'd think "The Famous Birdkids" would be old news by now, but somehow the world never grew tired of seeing _homosapiens_ _2.0,_ complete with working wings. Go figure.

As soon as she turned toward the convention center, Max deeply regretted taking Fang's commando challenge. She felt every step with her slightly swollen, sore, maybe-probably-still-turned-on girly bits. She ducked her head and hopped awkwardly towards the building on one foot, trying to shove her feet into her shoes without stopping, ignoring curious stares, and raking her fingers through her windblown hair. The heavy glass door slid open in a rush of air conditioning and she hurried towards the auditorium, tugging her jacket over her shoulders and hoping it would be simple trying to find Brigid among the swarm of professionals. At least she knew Brigid would have a seat waiting for her. One less thing to worry about.

Brigid's natural thoughtfulness, while it used to drive Max up the wall, was now one of her favorite parts of their friendship. Valencia Martinez had been so pleased when Max and Brigid finally started to get along, convinced that her careful planning with CSM personnel assignments (read: poorly-disguised matchmaking) had helped them get along. Max had always figured that Brigid's engagement to her college sweetheart helped the most.

Max tried to ignore the dampness between her thighs as she stepped through the auditorium doors. Her dazed grimace easily morphed into an easy grin when she spotted a waving Brigid near the front of the room. She furiously straightened her skirt and set her smile. Why did the auditorium have to be so damn long? Did Brigid really have to thoughtfully pick the perfect spot 2 rows from the podium, all the way at the front? She steeled herself and strode forward purposefully, pretending she couldn't feel her sticky nether lips catching on the skin of her thighs and tugging roughly at the hood of her clit with every single step.

_Just like in a fight, it's just a message. Hold the phone, Max is not taking calls. Please leave your message with my so-gonna-get-it-when-I-get-home Husband._ Max carefully sat down, intensely aware of how her naked sex was pressing right into the seat. She slid down to lift her hips slightly and let her head fall back to stare at the ceiling tiles. Time to regroup. That message about the slick slipping and sliding of her inner thighs needs to go to voicemail.

"Geez, Max, I was afraid you weren't going to make it. I didn't think Fang was going to let you go." Brigid elbowed Max and smiled coyly.

Max flashed a wry grin and wiggled her eyebrows. "Hah, are you kidding? Fang knows who wears the pants in this relationship."

Brigid laughed good-naturedly. Max bent over to rummage through her backpack. "I think _everyone_ knows who wears the pants in your relationship." Max snorted from her position hunched over her knees and rescued her notebook from the ratty black hole that she called her backpack, tossing it on the polished concrete floor. The idea that maybe her arousal could seep out onto the seat of her skirt made her want to squirm. She was grateful she was wearing black.

"Oh, hey, do you have the schedule? I forgot mine in the hotel room."

Max looked up from trying stubbornly to get the sand out of her right shoe. "'Course, it's in my notebook. Help yourself." She clumsily lifted the dog-eared thing over her head.

Brigid beamed and fingered through the pages. "Thanks!"

Max thunked her shoe against the concrete a few times and shoved her foot back inside, grimacing when her toes still felt sandy. As soon as she sat up, Brigid giggled nervously and her notebook was in her lap again. Max raised an eyebrow at Brigid's flushed cheeks and then frowned down at her notebook. "Did you find the schedule?"

Brigid nodded fiercely before opening her own notebook, avoiding eye contact with Max. "Yup. Got what I needed." She gave a tight-lipped smile, nostrils flared slightly, and flipped through her pages noisily.

Max frowned at her notebook again and pulled it open, flipping to her coffee-stained notes. She'd given the same talk about growing up in the School at least 50 times, but she always scanned over her speech beforehand so she wouldn't leave out anything important. She wasn't exactly a stranger to getting caught up in the moment and running her mouth. One finger plucked at the edge of the page when a messy scrawl in the margin caught her eye.

'_your scars are the_ most_ beautiful'_

Her eyes lit up with a grin. _Leave it to Fang_. She flipped the page and her eyes widened at the notes filling the margins.

_'I'll be waiting for you all day'_

_'I can't wait to taste your sweet pussy lips'_

_'you were so wet for me, I thought I might drown'_

_'I want to be inside of you'_

She slammed her notebook shut with a gasp. She couldn't keep her eyes from wandering over to where Brigid sat rigidly, staring fixedly at the podium as the first speaker tapped on the mic with a muttered _check-check-check_. Everything felt uncomfortably hot as she sunk down into her seat. All of a sudden, the nakedness under her skirt was maddening and she was embarrassed and kind of turned on and embarrassed that she was kind of turned on.

She took a deep breath and pressed her eyes shut, collecting herself and muttering under her breath. "It's fine, it's gotta be fine. Schedule was in the back. She's too nice to be nosey. It's _fine_." She didn't know which part Brigid had seen, but at least she was being pretty cool about it. Max straightened up a little and flipped to the last page where she usually doodled until it was her turn. She slid the loose schedule onto the facing page, expecting to see her weird daisy-chains-and-Eraser-guts scribbles, only to shove it right back with a squeak of surprise. Fang wasn't as good with pictures as with words, but his provocative addition to her sketch page was clear enough to make her feel her heartbeat between her legs. She squirmed all the way through speakers one and two and was flooded with relief when it was time for their first break.

Max stood immediately and pulled her arms over her head in a cat stretch, wondering if she had enough time to brave the bathroom line and stuff herself with toilet paper or something. She watched Brigid from the corner of her eye nervously, but Brigid just smiled back kindly. She opened her mouth to say something but was interrupted by a loud shout.

"Brigid! Whaddup, girl!" Max turned to see a blonde Barbie lookalike model-walking towards them down the aisle in a purple mini-skirt and bright yellow pumps.

"Who's that?"

Brigid leaned over conspiratorially. "That's Stacey, we've been working together on the wind power initiative for Chicago. She's still new to the CSM." She sat up straighter when Stacey perched on the back of the seat behind Max, her feet on the cushion in front of her. "Hey, Stace! I didn't know you'd be here?"

Stacey rolled her eyes dramatically. "I know, right? It's supposed to be continued training or something. Like watching all these boring big-wigs is going to teach me anything besides how well I can sleep in an auditorium chair."

Brigid laughed politely. "Just wait until Max gets up there. I've heard her story at least 10 times now and I'm still not bored with it."

Max smirked down at her. "That's got nothing to do with how you're _in_ part of it, right, Bri?"

Brigid laughed and waved her off. Stacey cocked an eyebrow and stuck her hand out for Max. "I'm Stacey Waters. Nice to finally meet the infamous Bird-kid. I swear I hear your name like ten times a day around the office."

Max grimaced and grabbed Stacey's hand firmly. "Yeah, people like the wing thing."

Stacey cocked an eyebrow challengingly. "Can I see them?"

"Uh, sure, yeah." Max shrugged out of her suit jacket at the familiar request and rolled her shoulders to loosen her wings. She glanced behind her, making sure she had a clear radius, and let herself gloriously stretch each cramped tendon until her cream-and-russet wings were arched behind and to either side.

Stacey's eyes popped open wide and she laughed incredulously. "Babe, seeing you in pictures is one thing, but those are _awesome!_ Very, very cool."

Max scrunched up her nose but grinned as she resettled her wings along her spine. "First look's free. Next time, you owe me lunch."

Stacey snickered loudly. Max looked at her appraisingly for a second before trying something new. "Uh, Brigid said you're new to the CSM. You're working on the Chicago Project?" She slipped her blazer back over her shoulders, pulling her hair out of the collar and wrapping it around one hand while she straightened the jacket with the other. Stacey's eyes bugged.

"Oh. My _god._ What whorehouse have _you_ been to?"

"Ex_cuse_ me?" Max gaped.

"You've got, like, eleventy-hundred love bites. Which island macho man have _you_ been playing with, chica?"

Max's jaw tensed and her mouth shot off before she had the chance to react. "Got into a fight with an octopus, clearly." She hurriedly swept her hair in front of her shoulders, desperately hoping she'd covered the bruises before Brigid had seen. One glance at her flushed friend dashed those hopes unkindly. She felt like she had rocks in the pit of her stomach.

Brigid, to her credit, only gaped for a hot second before leaning towards Stacey and laughing uncomfortably. "She's on her _honeymoon,_ Stace. Give her a break."

Stacey laughed wildly, "Ohmigooood, I so knew that!" She grimaced apologetically. "Sorry, I've got no filter. I forgot, I saw the wedding pictures in _The Pose _like two days ago, congrats, girl! I'm assuming Mr. Tall-Dark-and-Ridiculously-Unfairly-Handsome is the lucky groom? Fang, right?" She shimmied her shoulders and stage-winked.

"Yup," Max nodded, popping her 'p.' "Fang's pretty great." She tightened her eyes in a polite smile and shoved down the mental flashes of his probing fingers stoking her need.

Stacey sighed dreamily. "That is so friggin' adorable." She propped her elbows up on her knees and let her head loll onto her folded hands. "You guys have been together for, like, six years already and he still gets excited over you. So is he as awesome in bed as everyone thinks he is?"

Max nearly choked on her own spit.

"Stace!" Brigid lightly slapped at her friend's arm.

"Sorry, no filter," she deadpanned and turned back to Max. "Well?"

Max stammered incoherently for a minute and felt heat creep up her neck. She hoped her blush wasn't visible above the collar of her skirt and raked her hand through her hair. "Does it matter? Geez."

Stacey gasp-laughed and sat up again. "Wait, wait wait wait, seriously?"

Max looked at her defiantly. "What?"

"You haven't had _sex _yet?"

Brigid looked wide-eyed at a stone-faced Max before turning on her friend. "Oh my god, Stacey!"

Barbie shrugged. "It's written all over her face," she gestured towards Max blindly. "Haven't you guys been a couple for, like, forever? I figured you guys would've done the deed years ago. Man, if that slipped to _The Pose-_"

Max balked. "My childhood was screwed up enough without adding 'teenage-pregnancy statistic' to my resume."

"Yeah, okay, you've been dating the world's most eligible bachelor for _years,_ yet for some unfathomable reason you _abstained,_" she spit it out like it was a dirty word, "until you got married, and you're still waiting for god-knows-what to shack up? And he stuck around for all this? When did you tie the knot, anyway?"

Max's jaw clenched. "On Sunday."

Stacey counted with silent lips on her ringed fingers before looked up at Max incredulously. "It's been more than _five days?_ And you still haven't gotten any? Are you serious? Or do you, like, like women?" Her eyes went wide with her wild epiphanies. "Is Fang _gay_? Figures, it's always the hot guys!"

Max leaned back to put some distance between them. She wanted a lot of distance between them. Heck, going back to Antarctica would be awesome right about now. She could feel a muscle twitching in her temple.

Brigid's ears were bright pink with embarrassment for Max as she rounded on her friend and whisper-yelled. "Stace, seriously! Quit! They grew up in kennels, for goodness' sake!"

Max groaned and ran her hand over her face and through her hair before pulling it all forward again. Someone called Brigid from across the room and she grimaced apologetically before sliding past Max and leaving her alone with no-filter-Stace.

Stacey's face fell into exaggerated embarrassment. "Ohmigod, she's right. Geez, I'm sorry, chica, I forgot about the whole tortured-as-a-child thing. Fang probably just can't get it up, huh?" She frowned pityingly at Max.

Max felt her nostrils flare defensively and she tasted the adrenaline that always rushed her before a fight. "His soldier stands at attention just _fine_."

Stacey's consoling gaze contorted into an all-knowing pout. "Oh, honey, is it you? Listen, my friend Kim, she's a sex therapist. She talks to people about this kind of dysfunction all the time, she could help you out. I can't even imagine not being able to enjoy sex, that sucks." She snort-giggled at her bad pun before placing a hand on Max's shoulder and wiggling her eyebrows. "You must give Fang _great_ head to keep him around."

Max stared at her blankly before answering the thing she assumed was least embarrassing. "The head on his shoulders has gotten my Flock through more life-and-death situations than you can shake a stick at, so-"

Stacey gasped, interrupting Max to address this inconceivable shortcoming with a light shove to her shoulder. "Get _out._ Do you even know what a _blowjob_ is?"

Max narrowed her eyes. It felt like she was about to step into a steel bear trap, but she couldn't stop herself from asking the question anyway. "Uh, a what?"

Stacey's eyebrows shot up. "Seriously? Are you shitting me right now?"

Max pursed her lips and shook her head. "What's the big deal?" This entire conversation was ridiculously awkward. The next session needed to start, stat. And Max desperately wanted to find a pair of underwear. Underwear would be great. The least she could do was cover her physical nakedness while Brigid's coworker stripped her soul and secrets bare.

"That poor, poor man."

Max watched with trepidation as Stacey rooted around in her oversized purse before pulling out a bruised banana. She brushed it off and then stared pointedly at Max.

"Five days, and still no sex? At least pleasure the poor guy a little. You take his dick," she held out the banana in one fist, "and you let him have it real good." She proceeded to lick the spotted banana skin from her fist to the puckered tip before taking it in between bright red lips. Max's eyes went wide as she watched Stacey pleasure the inanimate piece of fruit. The thirty-odd seconds of disturbingly pornographic demonstration felt like an age and a half to Max, who couldn't figure out how to look away from the thoroughly repulsing scene. Suddenly, Brigid reappeared and snatched the used banana out of Stacey's grasp.

"Ohmi_god,_ Stace! I can't leave you alone for one minute…."

Stacey spread her arms. "I was just showing the girl some useful skills. C'mon, can I have my banana?"

"Are you going to fellate it again?"

Stacey wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and Brigid frowned, holding the yellow fruit far behind her. Stacey sighed and rolled her eyes before sliding off the seat and straightening her skirt. The 5-minute announcement for resuming sessions played from the speakers and the lights began to dim.

"No, I won't fellate it again. Let me eat my damn banana." She scowled as she snatched it from Brigid and turned to Max with a quick smile. "It was nice to meet you. Good luck with, you know, everything. I'll get Kim's card to Brigid, you can call her up next time you're in Chicago."

Max watched Stacey sway up the aisle, peeling her banana as she went, and turned to Brigid. "Is she always that…?"

"Forward? Rude? Uncomfortably personal?" Brigid groaned and slid back into her seat, and Max followed, fighting to keep her face calm when her slicked folds slid easily between her thighs. "She's not usually that bad, I swear." She looked at Max and bit her lip before softening her eyes and placing a consoling hand on Max's shoulder. "I'm sorry that happened. I think it's cool that you guys are taking your time. It's so easy to rush into it before you're ready, you guys are really rare that way."

Max set her jaw and rolled her eyes with a groan. "Isn't the ring on my finger supposed to mean I'm ready?"

Brigid shook her head emphatically and looked at her friend seriously. "You and Fang do what you and Fang need to do. As long as you guys are on the same page about it, you're doing exactly what you should be."

"Thanks, Bri." Max shot Brigid a brittle smile and turned to face the stage for the next round of speakers. She wasn't up until the 4th segment, and at the rate the conference was going, she wouldn't get home to her waiting husband until after dark. She let her mind drift to Fang's handsome smirk. She remembered Stacey's shameless display with the banana and wondered for the first time what it would be like to taste Fang the way he had tasted _her._ She remembered the way her heart pounded in time with his slick tongue and heavy breaths and the way he drew her together and shattered her to pieces with that one act. The nakedness under her skirt taunted her and she whimpered lowly at the unbidden arousal seeping quietly from her core.

She suddenly wanted, she needed, she ached, and she had hours to go. She peeked back into her notebook, glancing fleetingly at her scandalously defaced doodle page before looking for a clean one.

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><p>During the break before the final segment, Max loitered noncommittally in front of the break table. She was trying to judge which piece of fruit had the fewest bruises, palm hovering over the rows of over-waxed apples, when M. Pierpont suddenly appeared by her side, sharp and tall in a navy power suit.<p>

"Enjoying Fiji, are we, Ms. Ride?"

Max grinned up at him. "Hey, Mister Pierpont, it's a pleasure to see you." She abandoned the battered fruits to shake his hand firmly.

"Are you and the new Mr. Ride enjoying Little Batiki?" The playful glint in M. Pierpont's eyes made heat creep up on Max's chest. She tried to force out a 'yes' that sounded grateful, but not too excited, because her enjoyment of M. Pierpont's island had nothing to do with the island and everything to do with what she and Fang had been doing on the island. M. Pierpont laughed good-naturedly and clapped a hand on Max's shoulder. "You know you are welcome to stay a few more days if you like. Sometimes it's nice to get away from everything for a while."

"Thank you, sir, but the Arizona branch is expecting me back on Monday, and Fang already has work lined up with _National Geographic_, and anyway, the plane home is already booked, so I don't think we could even if we wanted to."

M. Pierpont chuckled politely and dug through his card-holder. "Always working hard, aren't we, Maximum?" He handed her a navy business card and looked at her pointedly over the rims of his glasses. "If you change your mind, give Nathan a call. He can shuffle your flight schedule around as-needed."

Max bit her lip, eyeing the card wistfully. "But the CSM…."

"Will survive without you another day. Hmm?"

The pair glanced up at the intercom when the five-minute warning was announced. Max looked back at M. Pierpont and smiled. "Thanks. Really. Your house has been awesome. I'll run the idea by Fang and see if he wants to stay longer."

M. Pierpont hummed his assent. "You do that. Until then, we both have somewhere to be."

Following M. Pierpont back into the auditorium was torturous. Her thighs rubbed her slippery lips mercilessly, and she wanted to doodle to forget about it but Fang's intimate notes were hidden all over her notebook, and there was nothing she could do in the middle of a freaking summit to quench the desire that had been steadily building all day. That Bird-kid was gonna get it as soon as she got home.

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><p><strong>AN: Clearly the next chapter is where we get back to lemons. Yay? I've got hazy bits of it all planned out in my head, I just need to get it down into words. I won't let this go more than a week, but maybe I can hash it out sooner. Hint: reviews are like a kick in my pants and make me motivated to write write write!**


	11. Day Six - Evening - Part One

**A/N: Man, I swear, sometimes I feel like I anticipate your guys' response to my writing with just as much excitement as you have waiting for my next chapter. Good thing you like my words, because I started off writing single chapters for each day and now all of a sudden this day has four parts. Where did my word count go? Read on for Part One of Max and Fang's sexy evening. Part two will be posted tomorrow.**

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><p><strong>Day Six - Evening - Part One<strong>

"Uuuuuugh," Max on-purpose-stumbled through the front door and fell face-first down onto the couch. She only found their tiny island by homing in on the yellowed lights of the bungalow. Everything else was covered in steel-grey twilight.

Fang didn't even look up from where he sat at the table, staring at his laptop with glassy eyes. Disturbingly bouncy music played from the tinny speakers.

Max grunted, grimacing into the upholstery, and turned her head to look across the room. Fang was slouched into his chair, ankles crossed, unshaven and listless with tan arms crossed across his black cotton v-neck and an empty bag of chocolate-covered macadamia nuts crumpled in front of him. Max's eyebrows drew together and she mumbled against the cushion, "Is that the _hamster dance?_"

He looked up at her coolly. "They're hamsters. They dance. It's catchy." He sat up a little and paused the video. "Long day?"

Max snorted. "Not as long as yours, clearly." She sat up and looked at him seriously. "You spent all morning giving me these bruises," she swept her hair off her neck and worked it into a ponytail, "and then you decided to go and deface my speaking notebook, too?"

Fang's dark eyes snapped up. "You mean you didn't like it?" His gaze flitted back and forth between Max's twitchy glare and the already-fading bruises on the delicate skin of her neck.

Max's mouth worked wordlessly for a second before she frowned and renewed her glare. "That's not the point! Point is, that's my stuff, and today I was supposed to be professional! And then, you steal my underwear and send me to a conference with a friggin' Slip-n-Slide between my thighs, and you're at home watching fuzzy rodents line-dance."

Fang smirked and closed his laptop to stand. Max's eyebrows shot up when he came out from behind the table to cross the room, half-erect and bulging modestly against his sweatpants. He stopped just in front of her and watched her coolly.

"I guess I'm not the only one, huh?"

"Not by a long shot." He leaned down to kiss her forehead and smoothly lowered himself to sit next to her. "But that was the point."

Max sat stiffly, trying to hold onto her anger. But then she felt Fang's nutty chocolate breath hitch by her ear followed by a chaste kiss just beneath it and everything started to melt away. She leaned into him and snickered, "You never told me hamsters are what does it for you."

Cool fingers trailed up her spine and down again, up and down, making Max shiver. "No judging. I worked first. Got a head start on my next projection for _National,_ hacked through my emails, got caught up with my blog..." He paused to press his lips to her again. She could feel his smirk against her skin. "_Then_ I followed the breadcrumb trail to 'Hamster Dance.'" He rubbed the tip of his nose along the ridge behind her ear and whispered, "And I _liked_ it."

Max's head lolled against Fang's and she sighed, "Sounds like a nice day, actually."

He grunted in agreement and sat up to look her in the face. "What about yours?"

"Hmm?"

"Your day? How was it?"

"S'better now that I'm home. I can only listen to so many speakers advocate the merits of green resources before it all sounds like the same mush." Her eyes rolled and she flashed a grin and let her head fall back on the cushion with a sigh.

Fang hummed his response and pulled his legs up on the couch, shifting sideways to face Max. He wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her flush against him. "And how's Brigid?"

Fang could feel Max tense in hesitation. "Brigid's fine. I mean, we just saw her at the wedding, so..." She trailed off and took hold of one of Fang's hands in both of hers. She turned it over to trace his palm, eliciting twitches from his fingers. His other arm hugged her tighter. "Hey, Fang?"

"Mmm?"

"Do you- I mean, do we... Are you happy? Like, with me? Physically?"

Sinewy arms pulled her closer. "Why, did something happen?"

Max huffed, frustrated. "No. Yes. Not really." She snorted and stared at the ceiling blankly. "I met Brigid's friend Stacey today. She might as well be a mind reader. She got a look at the bites that you left all over me and all of a sudden it was like the Spanish Inquisition. And she could see right through me. Like she's got a lie-detector built in." Max gnawed on the inside of her cheek for a minute and let her head fall back against Fang's shoulder. He waited patiently until she started speaking again.

"She figured out that we haven't actually had sex yet, and she just wouldn't quit asking about it. And, yeah, I wondered how you felt about it. 'Cause I didn't ask you, I just _told_ you that I wasn't there yet, and you didn't put up much of a fight, so..." The fabric of her skirt chafed against the couch as she shifted to look at him. His slightly blurry features watched her quietly.

Fang kept still for a minute before placing both hands on Max's hips and twisting her around the rest of the way to face him. He rested his elbows on his knees and trailed his fingertips against her arms and sighed. "It's me and you here, Max. Not Brigid, or Brigid's friend, or your mom or Jeb or anyone else. Just you and me. It's _always_ been you and me." He gave her forearms a reassuring squeeze. "I'm having the best time here with you. I don't even care that we're going slow, because we're moving forward." He leaned in to rest his forehead against hers and grinned. "And I had _fun_ last night. Figuring out how to make you feel like that."

Max frowned. "Okay, so last night was good. Awesome, really, I've been thinking about it all day." Fang smirked triumphantly. "But how the hell do we top that? Huh? Where do we go from there?"

"I've got some ideas." Fang rubbed the tip of his nose against hers and stared into her deep brown eyes and then sat up and set his shoulders. "Are you hungry?"

"No. They keep us well fed at these things. What about you, did you even eat dinner?"

Fang nodded towards the nuts on the table.

Max looked at him, annoyed. "What, did you eat _all_ of those? You didn't even save me a handful?"

Fang smirked. "I've got a handful of nuts for you."

"You do?" She stared at him blankly before scoffing and shoving his shoulder. "Oh, come _on._ Seriously? Are you serious right now?" Fang laughed and pulled her into a hug. "No, don't even!" Max squirmed under his grasp, indignant, only calming when Fang's face pressed into the crook of her neck, killing his joke and turning their closeness into...something _else_.

She could hear him breathing deeply against her skin. His breath was hot and rough and when he finally kissed the outside edge of her collarbone, she felt the goosebumps all the way down to her belly. When Fang's arms loosened their hold and his fingers were hovering over the top button of her blouse, she sucked in a deep breath and craned her head back, exposing the delicate skin along her neck to him. He brought his face up to meet hers and kissed her. She could feel the ridge of his teeth behind his scruff-rough jaw, the impossibly soft skin of his lips pressed into hers, the force of each loud breath he took. Just when her blouse was undone and she was opening her mouth to take more of Fang, he pulled back and looked at her with gleaming eyes.

"Do you trust me?"

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "Yes."

"Then I have another dare for you." His face crinkled in an impish smirk and he slid off the couch, pulling Max along with him by both hands.

Max shook her head incredulously, "I'm still suffering from the first one."

"Good. C'mon."

Fang pulled them out the front door, across the porch and onto the sand, before whipping around to face Max. His dark eyes bore into hers. He reached behind him to grab a fistful of black cotton and pull his shirt over his head. He let the t-shirt fall to the sand and shook out his wings.

"What the heck are you doing?" Max eyed his discarded shirt. Fang just smirked.

"_We,_ beautiful wife, are going Sky-Streaking."

"Sky-what-ing?"

Fang arched his wings behind him. "You heard me." With one obvious, crawling stare down and up Max's unbuttoned blouse and rumpled skirt, Fang took off in a vertical leap and left Max reeling and blinking the sand out of her eyes. She squinted up into the dark sky but couldn't see him anymore.

She yelled up after him, "Are you asking what I think you're asking?" The only sound was the wind rushing through the palm fronds. "What if somebody _sees_?" The seconds of silence were deafening and she felt a flash of adrenaline course through her. "We can't fly _naked!_"

He answered by dropping his still-warm pajama sweats right on top of her up-turned face.

Max huffed and threw them to the sand at her feet. "Flying naked...I'll show you naked!" Her nostrils flared and her heart thrilled in her chest and she shoved her skirt over her naked hips and into the sand. She had just shrugged out of her blouse and was reaching back to undo her bra clasp when Fang's black boxers fell ten paces in front of her. She pinched her eyes shut and pulled the cups off of her front. "I'm doing this, I'm really doing this. _Why_ am I doing this?" Her toes curled, sifting through the sand, and she could just make out the powerful hush of Fang's wing beats above her when his taunting cry of 'race you!' wafted down.

Without another thought, she pushed off with one grand sweep of her wings, shooting through the night air and absolutely buck-naked. As soon as she was above the palms, she caught a glimpse of Fang's wings glinting in the low moonlight and was after him like a shot. She laughed freely as she quickly overtook him and powered ahead.

She didn't even know where they were racing to, but she didn't care. The warm air whipped past her, caressing all of her naked curves, and it felt wild and free and primal. She laughed again, at how powerful she felt, at how big she was and how small the world beneath her, and definitely at how weird it felt for her breasts to be swinging freely beneath her.

"Max!" She whipped around at Fang's shout behind and below her. Her wings angled downward and she fell into a controlled spin, catching herself with gloriously outstretched wings at just the last moment. She was a freaking rock star. She landed in a crouch on slick, pebbly ground in the clearing Fang had called from. One quick scan of the area revealed the man himself, squatting with his back towards her at the edge of a still moonlit pool. Max wished she could say that the beauty of the natural oasis was what made her feel her heartbeat in her throat, but that wasn't what held her gaze. Fang's crouch displayed in full glory his well-muscled ass, from which sprang his broad, lean shoulders and powerful thighs. His crow-black wings drooped to either side until the longest primaries were dragging in the water in front of him to make ripples in the stillness.

Fang felt more than heard when Max cut through the air behind him. He breathed deeply, taking a moment to calm his trembling hands and feeling his stomach muscles clench at the prospect of the naked woman behind him. _His Max_.

He stood carefully and pivoted on his heels to find her staring at him. Her eyes flitted back and forth between his obvious arousal and his face. There was something wild in her eyes, from the flight or maybe from him, and he wanted to drink it in until he was drunk on her.

Then the clouds shifted and the moonlight brightened and Fang dipped his gaze to admire the whole of Max, fully naked before him for the first time. Each dip and curve seemed luminescent in the cool light of the moon. Her chest still heaved from the flight, creamy breasts rising and falling with each harsh breath. Her scarred ribs smoothly tapered towards her lithe, taught waist before relaxing into the swell of her hips. Greedy eyes raked over each curve of her thigh, over the slope of her butt, over the soft muscles of her arms and shoulders and then he met her warm brown eyes again and his breath caught in his throat.

A hot blush crept up Max's chest and she looked down at her toes, overwhelmed at the attention and the tangible, oh-so-visible vulnerability that had claimed them as soon as their last garments hit the sand. She looked back up at him to whisper, "Here I am."

Fang's 'yeah' was barely more than a whisper on the deep breath he loosed.

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><p><strong>AN: Okay, so I'm accidentally playing dirty. I promised citrus and we didn't quite get there. But only because the entire evening comes to more than 5500 words which seems way too long for a single chapter. So the rest is already written and will be posted tomorrow, keeping your wait nice and short. Let's call it...building anticipation.**

**What are you anticipating the most for their moonlit night? Did you like Fang's awful, awkward attempt at dirty talk (macadamia nuts, Fang's nuts...eh? Too much?) Maybe he'll figure it out a little better over the course of the evening. ;)**

**And we will definitely be toasting with lemonade in the next installment. That's the whole reason Fang brought Max out here, anyway. What do **_**you**_** think his plans are?**


	12. Day Six - Evening - Part Two

**A/N: Oh, man. You guys are anxious for dirty-talking Fang, huh? There's a little bit here and there, but you gotta remember that in this story, Fang is just as new to all of this as Max is - he doesn't always know how to articulate what he wants. I hope that's not too disappointing! I've been having fun writing sweet, semi-clueless, blind-leading-the-blind Fang, and I think giving him too many words would be out of character for canon Fang AND for the 6-years-down-the-line Fang I've been writing here.**

**Anyway - here we go...**

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><p><strong>Day Six - Evening - Part Two<strong>

Dark brown eyes met her wide warm ones. His keen gaze got stuck on on the glimmer of untapped desire swimming in hers. The air between them felt charged with promise and possibilities. Fang could feel it creeping over every inch of his exposed skin as Max somehow wound her way even deeper under his.

Max, _all _of Max, stood naked before him. Still, except for her wings settling gently along her spine and the steady rise and fall of her creamy-blushed chest. A poorly concealed smile began to tug at the corners of her lips as he stared at her.

"What?" she breathed.

Fang ran his tongue across his bottom lip and his throat bobbed with a nervous swallow. His head rolled back and forth in wonder and he rasped, "You're so sexy."

Max's shy smile crept wider and she cocked her head towards him, letting her eyes fall to his toes and back to his face appraisingly, "You're not so bad yourself."

Filled with renewed confidence, Fang purposefully crossed the few yards between them. He took Max's hands and led her down the bank until they were both ankle-deep in the silky-warm water. She looked up at him with a fading grin, lips slack.

Fang took Max's shoulders and tilted his head down to meet her upturned face and then they were kissing, tenderly and languidly, and he could feel every instance of her touch like a paddle-shock to his soul. They traded hot, panting breaths and Fang could feel a day's worth of stubbly scruff catch on her silky smooth skin as she opened her mouth to let him in. His ears rang and his blood ran hot and then all he felt was his heart and her tongue and the smoothness of her teeth as he tried to pull her closer with his kiss.

Nothing else existed.

But then the kissing reminded Fang of the heavy head slung between his legs. And when Max stepped closer and pressed him between their bodies, erect and ready, and Fang's breathing deepened. The firm muscle of Max's thigh pressed against him and he jerked involuntarily. He jerked again when her quiet, needy whimper hummed against his lips. He dropped his hands to her hips to hold her still and pulled back, taking her lower lip along with him before releasing her with a soft smack.

Their foreheads pushed and shoved in a passionate dance of short close-lipped kisses and shallow breaths. Fang let his hands fall to sweep across Max's supple buttocks, briefly squeezed the under-curve of her flesh, and then circled up to hold her waist. Max shivered under his touch.

He forced his eyes open and he looked down at her with a secretive smirk. "I did some more research today."

"Oh, yeah?" Max trailed her fingertips lightly along Fang's spine and his shoulders clenched.

"On what to do next. To get you ready," he pecked her lips, "For me." He carefully tightened his hold on her and pressed himself closer. He wanted to make sure she knew exactly what he was talking about. Her breath quickened and she ran the side of her nose against his longingly. He caught her eyes earnestly, "Do you trust me?" and when she nodded he felt relief and excitement all course right to the head of his dick.

Their lips pressed together again as one hand snaked between them, down over the soft, wiry hairs between her legs and further down still. He felt her swell with every heartbeat in anticipation and carefully, slowly, pressed one finger through her moist folds before he found the center of her heat and the delicate opening where he could press inside.

"Is this okay?" he whispered, and Max nodded weakly. When Max felt his finger slip inside her, she let out an embarrassingly low, throaty moan. Her eyes snapped up to find Fang's, looking for the teasing mirth she expected, but his brows furrowed and his lips caught hers up in a hungry kiss and a throaty sigh of his own.

He twisted his finger inside her, bending it at the knuckle, and stroked the spongy flesh on the inside of her pubic bone. Max felt like a puppet on a string as her stomach and thighs made her dance against him. She pushed herself into him, closer and closer in an intoxicating rhythm, drunkenly receiving Fang's open-mouthed kisses. He took his finger back and pushed a different one in, exploring and beckoning and then retreating.

Max whimpered at the loss. Fang's slick fingers cupped her swollen pussy gently and he pressed against her with the heel of his palm. His temple met hers and he breathed into the nook behind her ear, "God, Max. You're so wet." Goosebumps rippled across her in the wake of his words. He nibbled on her ear gently before whispering roughly, "I want to taste you again. So badly. So, so badly."

Max mewled quietly before whispering back, "Is it really that good?"

Wordlessly, Fang lifted his glistening fingers, turned away from Max, and cleaned the middle one with puckered lips. He turned back to capture her mouth in a penetrating kiss. An invitation to taste.

Her tongue cautiously explored, finding traces of creamy, tangy, liquid sex behind his lips and lingering on the roof of his mouth, and her breath caught as she searched for more. His half-clean hand pressed to her cheek, the rough pad of his thumb stroking her chin. His still-sticky pointer finger inched closer, pressing into the corner of her lips, and she instinctively turned to take the digit into her mouth.

Fang fought for breath while he watched Max scrape all traces of her arousal from his knuckles with her slick tongue. Her eyes caught his and she grinned around his bony finger before biting it softly and swirling her tongue around the sensitive fingertip. An animalistic groan bubbled up from the depths of his gut and his cock twitched impatiently.

He pulled his fingers from her mouth and reached back down to her warm snatch, slipping the first and then the second and then pushing gently with both fingers at once.

Max squirmed on top of the insistent pressure, torn between budding desire and a flutter of trepidation. She pulled back from the kiss and looked down beside their bodies, seeing where Fang's tensed arm disappeared between them. The muscles in his forearm clenched and he pressed deeper in. Max gasped at the sudden intrusion and Fang froze.

"Okay?"

Max pressed her face against his chest, willing herself to relax. "O-okay." She rocked her hips ever-so-slightly, easing herself down just a little further, until she felt his palm flush against her. She drew a shuddering breath, and when her thighs began to close of their own volition, Fang wedged his knee between them with a quiet hush and a mumbled 'I got you.'

Gently, carefully, Fang began to work his fingers in her. He tightened his free arm around her waist and pumped in and out of the quivering flesh at the apex of her thighs. Max felt a quiet burn, half pleasure and half a dull pain, so she stood still and breathed across the plane of Fang's chest while he stretched her carefully.

Fang pressed his lips into Max's hair and groaned as he rocked his fingers into her slick center. He couldn't help but roll his body against hers and then his knees gave way, taking him down into the shallow water in a clatter of pebbles and a splash, Max still clutched tightly to his chest. She gasped at the shift in pressure and then her lips were seeking, searching across his smooth chest, placing heavy kisses as they knelt together.

Fang bent to crouch over Max and then stretched, lengthening his body and carefully lowering her to the shallow water beneath him. Her hair swam in lazy tendrils framing her face and he pulled his free hand from around her waist and pushed it up her skin, clutching at her breast and kneading it as close to Max's lips as he could get it so that he could kiss back and forth, lips and nipple, moan and pebbled peak while his fingers worked diligently inside of her.

Max's hands wound their way into the soft hair at the base of Fang's neck and she sighed into his lips, finally feeling her body relax. But then, just as she got comfortable, Fang pulled out again and pressed against her insistently. He leaned up over her on one arm and watched for her permission to add a third finger to her sore, stretched core. "Slowly," she whimpered, and caught his lips in an insistent kiss. Fang was her lifeline.

Max tried to breathe through Fang's lips as he massaged her aching pussy with three fingers to coat the dry digit with her arousal. He pushed his fingertips in gently. He only made it to the first knuckle when Max arched away from him with a pained cry and a curse.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Fang murmured across her cheeks with light kisses.

"It's fine," Max winced, "I can handle it."

Fang frowned and began again, sitting up a little to watch her closely as he pressed into her with careful fingers. He could feel her flesh stretched taught around him and no sooner did Max's face contort in displeasure did he pull back out to cup her pussy tenderly.

He bent to kiss her again and swirled the first two fingers at her entrance. Max reached down between her thighs to grip his wrist and his fingers stilled, resting between her swollen lips.

"Let's take a break, Fang." She kissed his face all over with dry lips before letting him nibble on hers again. He withdrew his fingers from the wet folds and reached up to stroke her cheeks with his thumbs, all apology and sweetness. Max smiled affectionately up at him, liking the feeling of his warm body restraining hers. And then, the long, slender hardness resting patiently on top of her thigh twitched.

Max's smile turned positively devilish and Fang cocked an eyebrow questioningly. She pressed her fingertips into his scalp and pulled his ear to her lips. With a tantalizingly slow roll of her hips, she murmured, "I wonder if you taste as good as I do?"

Fang groaned, his head lolled, and his hips bucked. His breaths quickened and Max nudged his shoulder, rolling him onto his back in the pebbly water and hovering over him with water dripping off her shoulders. She blinked at him sweetly and shivers ran down his spine when she pressed her massaging thumbs into the hollows of his hips.

He looked up at her helplessly and she couldn't help but tease, "Do you want me to kiss your cock?" She wiggled her eyebrows lewdly.

"God, yes," Fang's eyelids fluttered shut and Max felt the power of her easy domination coursing through her. Forget 'successful recombinant DNA life form,' she was a freaking _goddess_.

She slithered down Fang's prostrate form till she crouched over her prize, thighs resting on his knees, and took the silky smooth skin of his engorged cock in one hand to give it a squeeze. Shuddering breaths escaped through his gaping mouth like machine gun rain and the soft glans at the head of his desire throbbed purple with the promise of True Love's Kiss.

Max ran her thumb across the base of the thick member and paused. She tried to remember every disgusting thing she had watched Stacey do to that poor banana. Fang gave her knees a squeeze and spoke softly, "You okay?"

"Yeah, I just...I don't want it to be bad."

Fang barked a laugh and his dick twitched in her hands, "I don't think you can do anything that will feel _bad _right now."

Max laughed nervously and shook her head to steel herself.

"Just go slow."

When her soft lips placed the first tentative kiss on the side of his cock, Fang's breath caught and held. Hot wetness spread like liquid fire as parted lips and a shy tongue explored slowly, and he couldn't help the jerk of his hips as her nose buried into the curling hair at the base to breathe him in. His joints stiffened as in a low whisper she said, "You smell like...like _sex_."

Tender kisses trailed back up the firm shaft, base to head, along the side. When she realized that he just tasted like clean, warm skin, she flattened her tongue against the underside and drew a harsh breath out of Fang's silently gasping lips.

She paused at the top and looked down his length. _Time for the moment of truth, Max_. She held her jaw open as far as she could manage and lowered herself around him, carefully, barely touching him. She was almost afraid to close her lips on his fullness but sucked around him at the last second. She felt Fang tense all over as she slid down, trying to figure out the best angle to accommodate his girth in her unpracticed mouth. When she pulled back up, her bottom teeth caught the lower ridge of the mushroomed head and Fang coughed in surprise.

"_Fuck,_" he cursed and his hands flew to Max's damp hair to keep her still. "No teeth, Max, no teeth." His voice was strained.

Max sat up, ripping herself free from Fang's grasp and frowning at him with wide eyes. A hundred snarky comments raced through her head, but before she could let any of them fly, she saw his member start to lean to the side and remembered their drunken night and her eyes softened.

When Fang caught his breath, he found Max looking down at him tenderly. Soft fingertips played across his lower stomach and she gave him an embarrassed smile. "Sorry. I don't know what I'm doing. Clearly." Her eyes rolled and she leaned across him to kiss the divot where his ribs met. "But I want to learn."

Fang's muscles clenched as she drew her short fingernails maddeningly across the V below his abdomen. His cock danced back to full attention and Max laughed lightly.

"Sooo...because I don't want to wait until we're back at home to scour the internet for '10 Scandalous Tricks for Sucking Cock,' and I doubt want to waste any time, either," she grasped the base of his member again and stroked slowly up the way he had shown her, "maybe you could tell me what you want?"

Fang stammered incoherently before rasping out, "Tongue. Use your tongue. Lips are fine. Just watch your teeth."

Max listened for more, but Fang let his head fall back with closed eyes and a deep sigh. She nodded firmly and braced her hands on his hipbones for the second time, bending down to take Fang's most tender flesh between parting lips.

Fang let out a deep, guttural sigh as Max worked her way down. She made it just past half way when her throat clenched and sat back up with a gagging cough. She breathed hard through her nose and took him in again, going as far as she could and then flattening her tongue against the thin, velvety skin.

She held him like that, with stretched lips and long tongue, for several very awkward seconds before Fang caressed her shoulders and gently cradled the back of her head. He drew Max back up and then down again until she tensed and pushed back. Together, they found a gentle rhythm, and Fang's hands fell slack. His cheeks felt hot and his nostrils flared as Max took him again and again, filling her mouth with his needy flesh.

He felt her linger just about the tip, hot breaths panting over him like an electric fog, and she took him in hand to hold him still for her. He gasped out in pleasure when she pushed him in through her closed lips and swirled her thick tongue across the swollen head. His stomach clenched and he felt pre-cum leak right across her hot tongue and his hand flew to his hair at the gloriousness of it, wings stretching out in the gently lapping water and feathers getting soaked and toes starting to curl without permission.

Max, on the other hand, tasted the bitter emission and pulled back, smacking her lips and fighting a grimace. She shook her head and breathed, "Definitely doesn't taste as good as mine."

Fang smirked through closed eyes and his flushed lips parted, "I'll warn you."

"You better," and down she went, finding her rhythm, making Fang groan. Eyelashes fluttered. Hooded eyes watched. Slick tongue slurped. Wet flesh smacked.

"Max, Max, Max Max Max Max," Fang chanted his prayer. His hips flexed and her tongue swirled around and around and around. And then the fuse was lit, insatiable and imminent searing pleasure drawing a neat string from his tightening ball sack all the way up to the tip of his burning glans. "Gonna come," Fang ground out just as her tongue flicked across his slit and everything pulled taught.

"Wha-huh?" Max let Fang's primed cock pop out of her mouth to look up at him not a second too soon. With a euphoric sigh, Fang's muscles pulsed and he gasped with each powerful spurt, spewing thick strings of ejaculate right into Max's face.

She gasped and her eyes clamped shut, frozen in surprise as Fang's fulfilled erection pumped gummy white semen across her cheeks. "Oh my god," she shuddered and wiped her tongue on the back of her hand. Fang stilled and lay beneath her with limbs like jelly. Max slid off of him, brushing his deflating erection with her knee, and filled her cupped hands with water again and again in an effort to clean the slick ejaculate from her face.

Fang lay there, feeling his heartbeat in his testicles and almost nothing else. After a moment, he scrubbed his shaking hand across his face and leaned up on his elbows. Max was crouched in the water at his feet with limp wings and a dripping face, rubbing furiously at her eyes. He sat up all the way, rolling to the balls of his feet to shuffle over to her and place his hands on her shoulders. He planted a heavy kiss between her wings with a whispered, "Thank you."

"I hope you're happy," she looked over her shoulder with bloodshot eyes, "that stuff stings."

Fang's eyebrows rose and he brushed under her eyes with his thumb. "M'sorry."

Max scrunched her nose and kissed the corner of his mouth. "S'alright. I'll dodge it next time."

Fang tightened his eyes in a smile and wound his arms around Max's waist, pulling her further into the pool and ignoring her protesting laughter. He rocked back to sit with crossed legs in chest-high water and pulled his Max into his lap, nestling his face into the crook of her neck. She leaned her head back on his shoulder and sighed.

"Hey, Fang?"

He nibbled quietly against her shoulder, "Mmm?" One hand smoothed over her skin, working its way down her hip and over her thigh and back into the soft place between her legs. The other cupped around one breast and brushed over the dusty rose peak with a feather-light touch.

"Thanks. For being patient. And for letting me figure it out. And for finding this place. It's kind of insanely perfect."

Fang hummed against her and she chilled, trapping his scruffy face between her cheek and her shoulder. She sighed as his touch drifted across her swollen lips to massage the rouged welts along her inner thighs. His touch was gentle and unhurried. The fire was gone and mostly it just felt _nice_ to curl up with Fang and bathe under the stars and have his caring hands fondling her under the water.

"Welcome." He smiled against her skin, just breathing her in, before speaking softly, "Max?"

"Yeah?"

"Tomorrow's our last day. We're supposed to fly out in the afternoon."

She laughed, not unkindly, and reached up to stroke her fingers through his facial hair. "You worried you won't get some before real life kicks in?"

He hesitated. "I wasn't gonna put it that way, but..." He buried his face under her jaw and made her squeal. "You _are _my wife."

Max giggled and patted his cheek. "Actually, M. Pierpont caught me at the summit today. Said he knew a guy who could rearrange our flight schedule. Maybe I'll give him a call and we could fly out on Monday morning instead. You said you got a head start on some work today, yeah?"

Fang's arms tightened around her. "They won't miss me."

"Good. Then it's settled." A grin split Max's face and she relaxed back against him. The warm water soothed her skin and Fang's hard body cradled her from behind and she sighed up at the silvery wisp of the moon. Eventually, they'd go back and dig their discarded clothes out of the sand and crawl into bed, but at the moment, Max couldn't think of a single thing she needed.

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><p><strong>AN: I hope that's satisfactory. =) I've had fun daydreaming up this chapter, which usually seems to mean that you've had fun reading it. **

**So, the long-awaited Day 7 is just around the corner. I haven't thought about it too much yet, besides the basic "Max and Fang finally do it" angle, and that they probably have to suffer through a good handful of super-awkward, first-time sex moments before they get into the swing of things, because the awkward bits are hilarious and real. Give me a few days to come up with all the pretty trappings that make it fun to read. And feel free to let me know what you're anticipating the most, since, you know, it's not written yet. What you say could change things! What do **_**you**_** want** **to read about on Day 7?**


	13. Day Seven - Morning

**A/N: Yay, we hit 40 reviews! I'm so glad you like the awkward, real-ish, not-just-straight-out-of-an-adult-film vibe. I've read so many stories where He meets She and then BAM, they're going at it like rabbits against a wall with like 10 seconds of foreplay, and She spends half the time arguing with herself over how wrong everything is, or she's making all these crazy noises, and it feels forced and unreal and over-the-top. I didn't want to do that to Max and Fang.**

**To the Guest Review - I'm sorry if that was unclear! Max was opening her mouth as wide as possible because she was still pretty squicked out by the idea of putting...**_**that**_ **into her mouth.. She choked halfway down because it's the first time and her gag reflex is super sensitive. No monster cocks here, just normal, awkward first-time stuff. =)**

**The idea that I started with was that Max is, in general, **_**very**_** capable, and **_**very **_**used to knowing what to do and being in control. But sex is something completely new for her, so she freaked out a little. She needed time to warm up to it.**

**Well, anyway...she's just about warmed up to it. =)  
><strong>

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><p><strong>Day Seven - Like Christmas Morning<strong>

Max tried, in a very lazy sort of way, to hold onto the lingering haze of sleep when her eyelids finally fluttered open. There was a soft smile playing across her lips that she could have sworn she was wearing when she fell asleep last night. The sticky heat at her naked back was cloistering, but she loved it because Fang's arms were wrapped around her waist, and his deep breaths ruffled the hair at the nape of her neck and the feathers on the top ridge of her cramping wings.

A yawn overtook her without warning, inflating her chest and neatly rolling out each limb in a delicious stretch. She could still feel sand between her toes. Fang's breath hitched when he woke behind her and he renewed his grasp on Max's elongated stomach.

"G'morning, sunshine," Max drawled and ran her hands across Fang's arms to lace their fingers together. Fang hummed happily and let out a long breath across her shoulder.

"Hi, Max." His lips curved against the soft skin at her neck and two days worth of bristly stubble scraped deliciously behind her ear. He wrapped one leg around hers in a tangle of lanky limbs.

They lay curled around each other, warm and naked and dozing as the sunlight felt its way into the room. Max squinted when the rays hit her full in the face and rolled face-first into the pillow with a groan. Her breaths sounded harsh against the downy cotton, which reminded her of how sexy Fang sounded last night when she had her mouth on him, which made her think of how intimate they had gotten with probing fingers and soft caresses, which provoked a beaming close-lipped smile so as not to taste the sheets. Max arched up with a small stretch of her wings and looked at Fang, pleasantly surprised to find him watching her with smiling eyes and his head propped up on his palm and his morning wood hanging between his thighs.

She playfully shoved him onto his back with two hands and lay right on his chest with a heavy sigh and her chin resting on her knuckles. She watched as he closed his eyes and crossed his wrists behind his head with a lazy grin plastered across his face. She poked the corner of his lips with one finger and laughed, "What's that for?"

Fang glanced down his scruffy chin at her and his grin widened, "You."

"Oh, yeah?" she grinned crookedly.

"Yup. You _later_. You right now. _You last night_." Fang practically purred and smiled his crooked smile. "It feels better than Christmas morning."

Max beamed and kissed his sternum, "Seeing you this happy almost makes the jizz in my eyes worth it."

Fang groaned and rubbed the dark bristles on his chin, a mumbled 'sorry' leaking out between his fingers before his grin bounced back. "For future reference, that happens every time."

Max snorted, "I got it now, thanks. You just keep on warning me, and I'll work on my stop, drop, and roll technique."

She wiggled her eyebrows and Fang's gritty morning laugh rumbled in his chest and she let her head fall onto her upper arm so that her hand was free to trace the contours under his skin.

"I'm not nervous anymore, you know." Soft fingers dipped into the smooth cleft of his collarbone and ran back and forth across the rigid bones there, making Fang's muscles twitch. _Her silent listener_. "Especially after last night," she flashed a toothy grin and bit her bottom lip and narrowed her eyes at him. "I kind of can't wait for later."

Fang's eyelids cracked open and he reached down to pull Max up by her armpits so that he could dip his head to kiss her on upturned lips. It was soft and just-woke-up sticky and Max hummed happily, curving into his touch as his palm smoothed down her side. His rough fingers counted her ribs and his thumb caught in her belly button and he pushed his way down over the firm curve of her bottom before squeezing the flesh there and letting his little finger rest in the small crease where it met her thigh.

They shifted together, slipping out of the cool sheets until Max had hitched her leg over his and her whole torso pressed against him. Fang took her face between his fingertips and let his lips linger around hers before pulling on her lower lip and making her sigh. Max smiled against him and kissed each eyelid, loving the feeling of his unfairly long lashes tickling the indent beneath her lips.

Fang's eyes opened, all soft and warm, and he reached down to lightly run his fingers through the hair between Max's thighs. She tensed and he frowned and brushed his lips across her forehead.

"Sore?"

Max rubbed the bridge of her nose along his rough jaw and felt herself ease into his touch. "A little, yeah. I can't tell if it's just from what you did for me last night," she kissed his collarbone, "or because I was turned on for virtually every waking moment of yesterday."

Fang wore a smug grin and wound her hairs around and around his fingers. "I loved that. That you were on all day." He tentatively explored the still-swollen flesh surrounding her core and Max squirmed until his fingers retreated to the soft curls above it. "God, Max, you were _so wet_ last night, I could almost smell it when you walked in the door."

A soft breath escaped her lips and she trailed one hand across her breasts with heavy-lidded eyes. Fang watched raptly as her fingertips danced above the subtle rosy bloom and he lit up with delight. He grinned wickedly and his fingers stilled. "You _like_ that."

Max blinked once before looking at him. "Like what?"

Fang's grin only widened. "You _like_ it when I talk dirty to you."

"Do not!" Max snapped, but her flush only deepened. She shrieked when he rolled on top of her, trapping her in a cage of limbs and growling playfully. His stiff cock dangled across her belly and she squirmed beneath him.

His eyes practically sparkled with mirth. "That blush won't let you lie, Max." He bent to kiss her flushing chest.

Max pressed her fingertips against his shoulders and tried to look indignant despite the way her flush crept up her neck and down her thighs. "I don't, you pig! It's degrading and objectifying and absolutely _not_ a turn on!"

"The lady doth protest too much," Fang nipped at her nose teasingly. "You _liked_ the dirty words in your notebook. And you _liked_ it when I told you how _wet_ you were last night."

Max furrowed her brows and set her jaw, nostrils flared and flush spreading across her cheeks. "Sexist _pig._"

He chuckled darkly and secured her wrists in his hands. "Maximum 'You're-a-sexist-pig' Ride." He wiggled his eyebrows lewdly before kissing her hard, invading her mouth with his tongue and eliciting the most delicious moan. The moment he released her wrists, her arms flew around his neck. He breathed his next few words right into her lungs, "You were soaking wet, and all I wanted to do was drink the nectar from your soft, swollen, delicious pussy." He tasted behind her upper lip and pulled it between his teeth to give it several short licks before releasing her and resting his forehead on hers.

"Fuck, Fang." Max's pants washed across his chin and she clutched his shoulders tightly. She ran one foot from his knee to his angle and rubbed her toenails against the arch of his foot.

Fang shook with silent laughter at the power of his teasing. He pulled her close in a crushing bear hug and nuzzled against her hair while he rolled them back onto their sides. His muffled voice offered a confession, "I _like_ that you still have secrets to find, Max." He pulled back and looked at her earnestly, pulling his thumb along her brow. "I thought I knew every part of you because of the School and because of Flock life. You see somebody fight and you see who they really are. But finally being married to you, it's just..." he trailed off and sighed and dropped his head to the pillow, just looking at her with fingers trailing through her feathers. "You're incredible."

Max laughed and turned her head away, "Oh-kay, Romeo." She caught sight of the modest erection between Fang's legs and screwed up her face in consideration before slithering down the bed to lay against Fang's hip. She shot him a sly glance and raked her fingers through his pubic hair. "You know, just because _I'm_ still sore from last night doesn't mean we can't still have fun. You know, while we wait for my Bird-Kid healing to kick in."

She watched as his cock stood up straighter, bobbing in time with the rise and fall of his abdomen as he took deep, anxious breaths. Her teasing fingers circled down between his legs to gently scratch the underside of his balls and Fang took a rasping breath, "Fucking incredible."

Max inched closer, feeling suddenly confident, and hovered just a breath apart from the dark skin that erupted from the mass of curls. He smelled like sleep and spice and salt from last night. Fang made a sloppy grab for the second pillow and shoved it beneath the first to prop up his shoulders. Last night was pure, unadulterated ecstasy - well, after the brief moment where he was afraid Max would bite his dick off - and he had been useless for everything until she had finished him off. But he wanted to _see _her with her lips wrapped around him.

He felt the fire begin in his belly when Max looked at him long and hard. Her lip curled and she lightly brushed the tip of her nose along his sensitive length. He bent his knees and opened up his hips to her with parted lips and when she tilted her head to plant an open-mouthed kiss, he couldn't help the deep, breathy moan that escaped his chest.

She began with a series of hot, wet kisses, tasting him all over and massaging his firm flesh with her soft mouth. Fang's quiet moans great persistent when she picked up the pace, licking him slick with the flat of her tongue from base to tip, balls to slit, all around to coat his dick with her flavor. By the time she finally reared up behind her curtain of hair to take him between her lips, there was fire coursing through his veins, making his heart race and his limbs fall limp and the muscles in his groin twitch violently every few seconds. Her soft mouth took him in and he let out a long, hissing breath that seemed to pull his eyes closed with it.

Blood pumped and flesh throbbed and Fang was lost in a world of the glorious slipping and sucking of Max's mouth on his cock. Her lips felt tight as they worked up and down and her tongue dragged over the bulbous tip, dipping into his leaking slit every soft often and making him growl a little.

His small whine of protest when she lifted off of him quickly shifted into a drawn-out groan when she stuck her nose into the spongy flesh around his testicles and began teasing him there with her tongue. His breath caught in his throat when she gently pulled first one and then the other into her mouth, caressing him with tickling licks and a nibbling smile.

Max hummed happily with Fang restrained beneath her while she suckled his jewels. She reached up to stroke his length with one hand while she worked with her mouth, digging her nose into the soft flesh connecting his balls to his cock and breathing him in deeply. Slowly, the soft skin she sucked began to tighten, forming ripples and wrinkles and pulling Fang's scrotum tight to his body. She gave him one last kiss before nuzzling her way up his length and dipping her head to consume his dark, purpled cock for a series of short, quick strokes that made him whimper.

And then Fang was sucking in deep lungfuls of air, chasing the maddening tingle that seemed to drain the blood from the rest of his body like a vacuum. He reached down blindly and fumbled for a grip on Max's shoulder but could only manage to cup the back of her neck with numb fingers.

Max released his cock and allowed him to pull her up the length of his body. She glided along his torso, slick cock pressed between them, and kissed him hungrily on the mouth. His fingers tangled in her hair and his lips froze against hers as his orgasm hit, coating their skin with hot, sticky ejaculate.

She grinned against his parted mouth and sucked hard on his lower lip as he languished beneath her. The soft sucking sound as she rocked her belly against him made her snicker. She pulled back, smoothing his cheeks with her fingers, and whispered, "Now we're stuck together forever. Like glue."

Fang coughed out a laugh and rubbed his hands up and down Max's sides affectionately. "Don't be gross." He craned his head up to kiss her again and then smirked, "At least it's not in your eye."

Max laughed and shoved his shoulder before settling back down into the crook of his neck. "We should probably clean up." But his hands were strong and his body was warm and the musky scent enveloping her as she breathed against his bristled neck was intoxicating.

He kissed her forehead once, twice, three times, before resting his hands on her lower back. "You stay here. I'll clean up first. Gotta pee anyway." He rolled them over slowly before peeling himself away from Max, frowning at the mess between them. Max wiggled her eyebrows and trailed one finger through it, only to laugh when he pulled his lips down in a grimace and turned away to the bathroom.

The shower kicked on and she thought of Fang, naked and glistening and covered in soap, and she started to feel tingly all over. There was a roiling pit of anxious desire in her stomach and she was still high on the powerful feeling of _making_ Fang come, and when she reached down tentatively between her legs, she found she wasn't sore anymore. Far from it. Her breath quickened as her fingers brushed lightly atop her warm pussy and she wondered if she could make herself feel the way Fang made her feel.

With a grunt, she pulled her hand back and let her head fall to the side. She didn't _want_ her hand. She wanted _Fang._ She wanted him in a way that she didn't even know _how_ to want him when they had gotten married a week ago. She'd been kissing Fang since she was fourteen, but not the way they'd been kissing in Fiji. It was hot, and it was sensual, and there was naked skin involved. Max smiled to herself and let all the best moments of the week flow through her head. She was dozing happily, with one hand still atop the sticky mess on her belly, when Fang suddenly appeared above her with a satisfied grin.

"Your turn. I ran you a bath." He leaned over her to kiss her on the nose and she opened her eyes to a half-dressed and clean-shaven Fang.

"Hey! What happened to your baby-beard?"

Fang cocked an eyebrow, "_Baby_ _beard_?"

Max gave him a simpering stare. "Fine. What happened to your incredibly manly, fuck-hot stubble?"

"Got itchy," Fang shrugged and shoved a t-shirt over his wet hair. He gave her a patronizing look, "It'll grow back, you know."

Max huffed and rolled up and off the bed. Fang eyed the dripping mess on her belly and his lips twitched in a barely concealed smile before turning towards the TV room, pulling the bedroom door mostly closed to give Max some privacy. Max made an ugly face at the spunk when one drop made a run for her hips and grabbed an excessive handful of tissues to wipe some of it off before tossing them mostly towards the trash can.

She squatted in front of her suitcase to dig for her nail clippers when something dark and sheer caught her eye. When she lifted the corner of the all-lace lingerie from where it had been buried beneath, well, _everything,_ her heart was hammering in her chest. She glanced at the unfolded note that fluttered out from the folds - _Have a great time! _ _Nudge_ - and carefully laid out the black strapless bodice, matching sheer panties, garter straps, stockings, and...freaking _stilettos?_ Part of her was absolutely, completely mortified that Nudge had gone shopping for _this._ But a bigger part of her relished the way it made her heart pound to think about what Fang would do when he saw her actually wearing it.

The desire turning her stomach solidified into determination and Max snatched up the garments and marched into the bathroom. There was the bath, steaming and waiting like Fang said it was. She shivered at the goosebumps as she eased into it and let a radiating smile split her face. Fang had better be ready for her, because she was soooooo ready for him.

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><p><strong>AN: Anticip-**

**-**_**pation**_**. **

**Seriously. We're so close. Max finally knows enough about her body and Fang's to feel confident, and we all know that Fang's been ready from the get-go****.**

**As always, please let me know what you're thinking. =) Did you like the tiny moment of dirty-talking Fang? Will Max really follow through with her sexy underwear plan? What do you think poor Fang (lucky Fang?) will say or do when he sees Max?**


	14. Day Seven - Afternoon Tease

**Day Seven - Afternoon Tease**

Max languished in the tepid, cloudy bath. Her skin was pink and tingly from shaving and exfoliating and other ridiculous girly things. She had tried to ride out the last little bit of nervousness she felt about _sex,_ but the sound of Fang's voice as he pushed back their flight kept drifting in and the black lace balled up on the counter kept catching her eye and everything reminded her that Fang had waited patiently all week long and dammit, she told him she was ready.

And she was, she really really was. Nervous or not, she wanted to be with Fang. In every single conceivable way. So why did she feel like she needed a pep talk?

_I am fucking Maximum Ride!_ She lifted herself out of the tub with a rubbery squeal and a torrent of water and made a grab for her towel. Moisturizer first. Maybe run a comb through her hair. _Then_ she'd figure out how to put the lingerie on.

**A/N: It won't take Max **_**that**_** long to figure out what goes where. Expect a full-length chapter later today.**

**Also - buwahahaha! Evil, I know. Tell me all about it.**


	15. Day Seven - Afternoon

**Day 7 - Afternoon Delight**

Her tan fingers curled around the edge of the door and she angled her head until she could see her husband. He was sitting cross-legged on the couch, laptop on his knees and lazily sipping a ginger ale. Max pinched her eyes shut and did a nervous little dance before nudging the door open. One step-in-heels, two steps-in-heels, three steps-in-heels. Max's heart was pounding in her throat as she moved unsteadily across the floor towards Fang.

She knew that he knew she was there. His fingers had stilled on the keys of the computer and a small smirk was playing across his lips. She grinned at the small tremor in his hand when he reached for his drink and she practically purred, "Hey, lover-boy."

He paused, took a small sip, and turned coolly towards her, watching the ice bob in his glass as he placed it carefully on the table and finally, finally lifting his gaze.

Fang caught an eyeful of black lace and choked hard, spluttering against his mouthful of soda and pounding his chest with his fist, eyes watering, Adam's apple caught halfway down his throat.

Max snickered and took another step towards him, snagged her heel, and BAM! she was kissing the floor. She groaned, forehead rolling against the cool tile. Fang gave one final wheeze, cleared his throat, and slipped from beneath his laptop. Max winced as she heard his bare feet pad quickly across the floor, jeans swishing noisily, and then he was crouching at her head with one hand on her shoulder. _So much for cool and sexy, _she thought ruefully.

"You okay?" he rasped and coughed again through closed lips.

Max tapped the floor twice before looking at him from beneath her brows, "Just dandy."

Fang took her hands and pulled her up from the floor, making a grab for her shoulders when she wobbled in her shoes. He had trouble keeping his eyes on her face, considering the sinful way that lace was hugging her body. Max watched his Adam's apple bob as he swallowed the last of his soda and then felt her stomach clench when he reached out with tentative fingers to trace the satiny black seams of her bodice. The vertical lines lay tantalizingly along Max's figure to transform slim into undeniably soft, feminine curves.

He stared blatantly through his long lashes. "This is...different." His pupils blew wide as they followed his finger's meandering path. Every inch of lace was titillatingly sheer and he could just make out her dark nipples and the swath of hair covering her sex beneath the delicate filigree.

Max set her jaw and her nostrils flared. "I'm wearing this crazy getup for you, you know."

"Different isn't bad." He'd seen all the parts of her body at one time or another, but seeing them half-hidden and beckoning made his breath catch in his throat. He looked up and managed to catch her eye before his gaze was pulled back to her delicately clothed bust. "Where did it come from?"

"Nudge," she grumbled. "Nudge packed it." She frowned and flushed and felt overwhelmingly ridiculous for even trying the thing on. "I didn't even know it was in there. Fuck, I'll just...I'll go change." She huffed and took a step back, but Fang hooked a finger into her garter strap. He stared at her for one hot, burning second before bowing to lavish smooth kisses atop the creamy flesh that pillowed at the top of the bustier.

Max pulled in a breath that made her feel half a foot taller, heart fluttering, and she took another shaky step back. She met the wall with a dull thud and Fang followed, pinning her between the plaster and his searching mouth. His hands were soft and everywhere, palming her ass and gripping her thighs and then rising up her body, pushing past her breasts, and cupping her face tenderly so that he could kiss her there, too.

Max melted against Fang, molding her mouth to his as his fingertips slipped into her hair. His mouth was soft, searching, with quiet smacks and gentle nibbles along her lips. Her hands felt up his chest, past his cotton-covered nipples and over his shoulders and down until she could feel his heart beating between his wings and in his minty-ale mouth as he kissed her.

Fang leaned harder against her, pushing her wings into the wall, and she felt his long, firm length beneath his jeans. Max swiveled her hips against him in a way that made her lady-parts tingle. She could almost feel him getting harder with each pass. Fang let out a harsh breath against her shoulder and rested his head there. He reached down to grip the supple flesh beneath her panties and silently urged her on.

They only lasted half a minute before Fang's shaky whisper tickled in her ear, "What are you doing to me, Max?"

Max's gyrations slowed and she tried to pull back but Fang gave her no room to move, fitting his hips firmly against hers. She stilled and slipped her fingers under his chin to turn him to face her.

"I'm trying to consummate my week-old marriage, you loon."

"Now?" Fang's eyebrows arched minutely and he stood a little straighter.

She fixed him with a wide, doe-eyed stare, the picture of innocence, and grazed her cool knuckles against his firm stomach just beneath his shirt hem. "Unless you have something better to do."

Fang's eyes travelled the length of her body and back in a heartbeat and he looked at her warily. "You're serious?"

Max broke character with a snort. "Yah, no, I'm just wearing this so I can freak Mom out when I Skype her later." She kissed his cheek and flashed a lopsided grin. "'Course I'm serious. We've been prepping all week. I want this."

Fang's eyes grew bright and his lips met hers in an eager kiss. He bent at the knees and swept Max up in his arms, earning an indignant shriek, and laughed, "C'mon, Love Bird." She writhed and he grinned and they ambled into the bedroom where Fang dropped Max on the edge of the bed.

Max looked at Fang expectantly. He was standing there, unmoving, just _staring_ at her. She gave him a curious look and he shook his head.

"You're stunning." He eased down onto his knees before her and reached up to fiddle with the hooks on the garter straps. He released one, pulling the stocking down just past her knee, and gave her a squeeze. "I want to go slow."

Max drew a shuddering breath as he carefully exposed her scarred, smooth leg. "Take your time." Her toes twitched when the stocking fell all the way off. Her cheeks flushed and her push-up breasts swelled with each heavy breath. She watched, entranced, as he ran his clean-shaven face down her clean-shaven leg to plant small kisses along the way. It felt like silk. The other stocking came off and then calloused fingers cupped her intimately, tugged at her panties, slipping under the elastic holding them against her and grazing across her swollen lips. Max felt her arousal welling up from her aching center and pooling there. Fang pulled his hand away, his slick finger leaving a shiny streak on her thigh.

Max gasped and squirmed when Fang slid the crotch of her underwear to one side. He leaned in, nipping his way along her inner thigh until his smooth lips were against her and kissing the evidence of her desire for him.

"Fuck, Love, you're so wet."

Fang felt his cock throb when he saw the frothy white cream pooling between Max's thighs. He couldn't stop his tongue from pushing past his lips to taste the rich custard cream in front of him. He groaned into the heady deliciousness and felt Max sigh above him. He pushed her open with a hand on her knee and his elbow against her thigh and leaned forward to nibble delicately at the soft flesh that he kept exposed by curling his fingers tighter into her panties. Max gasped and then her hands were tangled in his hair, pulling him into her and making her moan in delight as he worked her closer to passion.

With a whimpering cry, Max grabbed a fistful of Fang's shirt and tried to pull it over his head. Fang let her panties slip back in place and twisted his arms to help Max rid him of his clothing. As soon as the offending article cleared his head, Max's hands were at his fly and his flew to the waistband of her underwear and they were twisting against each other, fumbling with buttons and zips and what the heck is that hook-majig at the top of Max's shirt-bra-thing?

Fang had risen up to kneel on either side of Max and was just pulling the corseted bust from her body when she was tugging down his boxers. One finger poked against his inner thigh and he jerked away with a voice-cracking screech and Max bust out laughing.

"You squealed like a girl!"

Fang gave her a warning stare and rose up to his full height, made notably impressive by the ominous opening of his wings. She simply snickered through grinning teeth and then pounced at him, digging her fingers mercilessly into his ribs and making him twitch and squirm. He snatched wildly at her wrists, lips writhing between a grimace and a crazed grin. Max thought it was hilarious watching Fang try not to laugh, but his dark dark eyes were practically black with lust as he reared up over her with curling lips.

The black fire that danced in his eyes sparked inside of Max the instant that Fang caught hold of her arms and slammed her hands into the pillow over her head. Her smile died on her lips and they struggled to catch their breath while the fire grew. And then it was _blazing_ because when Fang leaned forward to kiss her, his dick bumped right against her parted pussy lips.

He stared at her for a moment, watching his desire echoed in her eyes, and then bent down to meld his mouth with hers. His erection shifted, rubbing against the wet folds at the apex of Max's thighs, and Fang groaned and Max whimpered so Fang did it again. He could barely breathe as he felt himself slip against her, his aching tip bumping its way merrily down Max's center and until his shaft was delicately ensconcing between her swollen labia.

"Will you let me make love to you?" he breathed.

Max kissed him and turned her lips and whispered, "I am so ready for you."

With a harsh breath, Fang sat up. His thighs were straddling Max, so he shuffled to fit his knees between and then underneath hers, stretching her legs open and giving him the _best _view. "Prettiest pink I've ever seen," he mumbled. He glanced at Max, waiting for her to laugh at him again, but he only saw her blush blooming across the skin of her chest.

He shimmied closer and reached down to position himself. It took him several dragging passes (and several gasping moans from Max) before he found the place he was looking for and could start to slip inside of her. His eyes found Max's and she gave him a short nod.

"Just...go slow?"

Fang smiled softly and placed his hands on her waist. "Whatever you need, baby."

Then Max _did_ laugh, lifting one leg to shove his shoulder with her toes. "Who's the baby, Mr. I-Can't-Handle-My-Wife-In-Lace-Without-Hacking-Up-a-Lung?" Fang caught her foot and kissed the arch, making her squeal.

"You should probably wear lace more often. Let me build up a tolerance."

Max wiggled her eyebrows lasciviously. "You think so?"

"Definitely," Fang's eyes softened and he lowered her foot back to the bed. Max caught her breath as his cock shifted between her folds and subconsciously braced herself for the next part.

Fang leaned forward, unhurried, nudging himself into her bit by bit. He leaned across her torso to touch noses with her, holding her gaze. Their eyelashes brushed against each other and Max kissed his lips lightly with gasping breaths. She could feel him slipping into her, stretching her apart and filling her up and somehow making her whole. His warm breath washed over her as he rolled his hips slowly, easing himself further and further in until his pelvis pressed against hers and she could feel the soft skin of his testicles resting against her.

Max's mouth flipped between a grin and a frown, torn between accomplishment and pain and pleasure. "We did it," she whispered, "we did it, we did it, we did it." Fang watched her silently. She finally settled on a tight smile with knotted brows and kissed him again. "I love you."

Fang kissed her delicately, just barely nipping her upper lip. He pulled his hips back and shifted forward again, making Max's chin tip back. He kissed her neck with soft lips and raised his hips to thrust again, only to be met with a slick _pop_ as his cock slipped out of Max and poked uselessly around her entrance.

Max reached down with a breathy chuckle, groping for Fang's swinging member and lightly scratching the base before repositioning the tip. Fang tilted forward again and thrust into her, one, two, three, four, fi-

"No, Fang, Fang Fang Fang!" she kissed his chin, "you, uh, you fell out again."

Fang sat up with a grunt and leaned back on his heels. He scowled at his cock and took hold of it, pushing it around Max's pussy before it slipped back inside. Max ran her hand along his forearm and smiled softly. "Hey, we're here, right? Me and you. Max and Fang."

Fang's lips pressed into a tight line and his brows furrowed. He braced himself with one palm on her hip and the other on her knee and rocked his hips to push into her, then back out, in and out, back and forth, and his fingers pressed deeper into Max's flesh at the sight of his cock disappearing again and again into her soft body.

Max let out a small moan and wrapped her hands around Fang's wrists when he finally found a gentle rhythm. "Just like that, baby, just like that."

Fang fell forward and wedged his hands beneath Max's shoulders to look down at her as he moved inside of her. His stomach clenched with each thrust and Max reached up to his abdomen to feel the muscles work. He rocked into her the way a wave crashes over a rocky coast, slipping low and then pushing deeper in, lifting up on locked elbows and holding himself above her for a breathless moment before sliding back down and grinding into her again.

Their eyes were locked, wide and trusting and laid utterly bare. It made Max burn with love for the man whose soul was being driven into her being with every thrust. She pressed her hands against his flushed face, feeling safe under his stare and also more exposed than she ever had in her life.

She whispered up to him, "I'm yours."

Fang was lost in her warm brown eyes, clouded with her arousal and brimming with such affection for him as he had never seen. Physically, of course, this was awesome. But even more, in his gut, he was welling up with a heart-clenchingly primal need to dominate, to protect, to cherish. He stretched his wings gloriously above them and then drew down to wrap them in a curtain of shadow.

He watched, mesmerized, as Max shifted against the pillow with each of his thrusts. Like they were one creature with one heart and one drive. Max's body was just an extension of him, he knew it down to his soul. She was inextricable from him and he thought he had never loved Max as much as he did in that moment. The air trapped beneath his wings was growing thick with perspiration and harsh breaths. Fang's own raspy gasps snarled through his parted lips and echoed around him, mingling with Max's keening breaths.

He was hypnotized by her stare. Her eyes bore into his, then flicked to his mouth, back to his eyes, then up to the ceiling. Her thin eyebrows creased and knit together at the top of her nose. Her lips opened in a delicious "o" and she threw her head back, mouth panting and neck pulsing and then hands pulling Fang down by the hair on the back of his neck to meet her lips.

Their stuttering kisses were unfocused but desperate, each missing the mark to breathe against a cheek or an upper lip or a chin. Fang grunted and smacked intently against her collarbone before simply pressing his face against her silky, sweaty skin, curling his arms behind her neck and thrusting into her so deeply that he could hear his skin slapping against her with each quick push of his hips.

"Ah, ah, aha, aaaah, ah," Max's quiet keening grew insistent, guttural and animalistic, music and motivation for Fang as his hips twitched into hers again and again and again. "Ohmigod, Fang, I love you, I love you, ah, ah, don't s-stop, _fuck!_"

Fang's face pressed deep into the pillow, his ear at Max's cheek, as he bore down. His thrusts grew erratic, stuttering and then pressing in so deep that he was sure he was touching Max's soul. Max mewled helplessly beneath him, small and beautiful and his. He turned to suck hard on her neck and renewed his efforts with shaking hips.

Max gasped and whined and reveled in each thrust. Fang filled her again and again, slipping smoothly in and out of her tight entrance. The lingering discomfort was completely overshadowed by the satisfaction of being taken over and over. She felt sweat collecting beneath her knees and in the small of her back and saw it beading on Fang's shoulders and sucked in a cool breath of relief when Fang lifted his wings to hold them outstretched like a canopy above them.

And then a great thing took hold of her, visceral need and heart-pumping swelling and quivering flesh dancing wildly to the rhythm of Fang's panting breaths and spasmodic thrusts. Her keening cries grew long and breathless and she turned her head, desperately seeking Fang's lips. He held her to him tightly when her mouth met his and then the burn took her over, rippling and then fizzing through every muscle and making her knees lock before they went limp and she lay there, panting in ecstasy and feeling her throbbing pussy clench vigorously.

Fang gave a low groan when Max's flesh clamped down on his and he felt his entire lower body clench. His pleasure burst in a fire-cracker trail up the length of his cock and his jaw worked silently against Max's chin. He fit his hips flush with hers and was lost in the ecstasy of coming _inside of Max_. He let out a guttural breath and felt his muscles go lax, leaving him spent and leaning heavily on top of her.

Max sighed listlessly as her breathing slowed and her seizing sex finally give its last squeeze. All that lingered was the light pulse of her heartbeat fluttering through her swollen flesh. Fang was already spent, even though he'd climaxed after she had, and his slumped form got heavier by the second. Her wings were being crushed into the mattress, and now that the main event was over, she couldn't ignore the discomfort.

Max's groan was trained and she patted him awkwardly on the back, grunting encouragements until he helped her roll to the side. She kept her legs wrapped firmly around Fang's lower body and curled up tightly against him, holding his softening member inside of her and resting her cheek on his collarbone. Her insides felt slick and warm from Fang's emission and she wanted to hold onto the feeling forever. Fang grunted and wrapped his arms tightly around her, nuzzling her neck with a wistful hum and a soft, lingering kiss.

They lay there in a breathless tangle of limbs for several minutes. Fang shivered every so often while Max's hands played lightly in his hair. He rubbed soothing circles across her sides and lower back.

Max hummed and lightly kissed Fang's collarbone. "Whachu thinking about?"

Fang was still but for the lazy rubbing along her warm skin and she almost thought he'd fallen asleep when he softly replied, "How perfect you are."

Max smiled contentedly and burrowed closer against him, hiding the most attractive flush as it burned across her cheeks. She leaned up to press her swollen lips chastely to his chin and whispered against the soft skin beneath it, "I love you like this. Afterwards."

Her lean hands gently massaged his waist. Her fingers brushed across his relaxed buttocks every few moments, feeling the clammy chill left over from the sweat of passion.

"You play it so cool all the time," she whispered against him, "and then something catches you off guard, and it's like inner-Fang peeks out. Just for a second. And it's so refreshing." She snuggled into him, loving the feeling of being wrapped tightly in his legs and arms. "I get this thrill in my gut because you're crazy, like me, somewhere deep inside, even though you hide it. We're just...so _good _together."

Max planted her open lips against Fang's throat and he sighed. He could feel her eyelashes fluttering against him. He stroked her sleek feathers with his fingertips and a hazy cloud of drowsiness edged over him. Just before he succumbed to sleep, he felt Max relax in his grasp and her breathing slow and her quiet, sleepy hum of contentedness vibrated through his chest.

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><p><strong>AN: What do we think? Was it worth the wait? Should they get in some more practice before they catch the flight Monday morning? (It's only Sunday afternoon, after all.)**


	16. Day Seven - Afterglow

**A/N: Aaaand I've hit the big 5-Oh for reviews. This is awesome, guys, thank you! Replies to the most recent reviews are at the bottom of this chapter, because long author's notes before the chapter can be frustrating. Here's a sweet in-between moment for you guys.**

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><p><strong>Day Seven - Afterglow<strong>

They dozed off and on for the next half hour, neither wanting to move, but eventually the heat was too much and the gummy mess between Max's legs felt unbearable and she kind of couldn't feel her left arm anymore, anyway. She pushed herself up onto her hip and whimpered at the dull burn between her legs.

Fang's eyes were open in an instant and he smoothed his hand across her thigh. He looked at her, concerned.

"Don't mind me," Max screwed up her face and sat up the rest of the way, squirming when Fang's release began to dribble down her aching thigh. Fang watched her carefully as she chewed on her lip and crossed her arms over her naked chest self-consciously. When she felt the mess start to drip onto her ankles, she groaned and threw herself back down on the bed, gasping roughly and squeezing her knees together and wishing the burning would just stop already.

Fang sat up and looked down on her, replacing his hand against her thigh. "What's wrong?"

Max bit back a whimper, "I'm real sore. Inside. Everything just feels hot and rough and runny." She ran her hands through her knotty sex hair and sighed, "I just want another bath."

Fang's soothing hand stilled. He grunted and slid himself over her to roll off of the bed, turning wordlessly towards the bathroom.

"Where are you going?" Max wanted to kick herself for sounding so whiny.

"Wait," was the obnoxiously short answer that was thrown over his shoulder as he disappeared through the doorway. Max heard the faucet kick on and the whine of water in the pipes and her face lit up when she realized that Fang was filling the tub for her.

A few minutes later, naked Fang reappeared and lifted naked Max right off the bed, ignoring her protest and the runny mess that was smearing unpleasantly down his arm.

" I can still _walk,_ dammit!"

"Let me take care of you." He looked down with enough concern to make her fall still, wings hanging limp. His lips were pressed into a thin line as he whispered, "Please?"

Max groaned and rolled her eyes but turned to press her lips to his bare chest, "Fine. Whatever."

Fang nodded once and walked them over to the tub. His fingers dug a little harder into her flesh as he lifted first one leg, then the other, easing them down into the steamy bath. Max watched the rising water spill over the edge of the tub and wondered what the heck Fang was doing.

Max was cradled between Fang's torso and his bent knees. He maneuvered her carefully until she was sitting with her back pressed to him and his sinewy arms wrapped around her skinny waist. He settled back against the edge of the tub with a sigh and pulled her with him.

"Fang?" Max listened to the dripping of the faucet and shivered as Fang's breath washed across the nape of her neck. He ignored her and squeezed a generous dollop of body wash into his palm, lathered it up in his hands, and began smoothing it across Max's arms and back.

She gave a throaty sigh and let her head loll to the side, enjoying his touch so much that it took her a while to notice the way he carefully avoided touching her breasts or anything below her waist. Eventually, though, his hands grew still and she couldn't help but notice. He withdrew and she felt him tense up behind her, leaning back so that they were barely touching.

"Uh, did you want me to get you?" Max idly flicked the surface of the water while she listened to him breath softly behind her, parting the sudsy film and revealing Fang's long foot beneath the soap-clouded water. When he didn't answer, Max narrowed her eyes and twisted around, sloshing the bath water and carefully wedging her feet between Fang's hips and the tub. She leaned her elbows on his knees and cocked an eyebrow, "Okay, I give up. You just got laid, why are you not up on cloud nine with me? What the hell is happening here?"

Fang stared at her coolly before his eyes drifted to gaze, unfocused, at the sinks.

Max pursed her lips and shook her head slightly. "I must be missing something monumental. That was you in bed with me an hour ago, yes?" she asked, palms up. "We finally get down and dirty, which you've been waiting for all week - longer, probably, who am I kidding - and now you're moping like a five year old? What the hell?"

Fang blinked twice, slowly.

Max growled and snapped the air between them, "Hey!"

Fang looked back at her, infuriatingly blank.

"Thank you," she huffed with an exaggerated eye roll. "What is _wrong?_" she chewed on the inside of her cheek and watched him thoughtfully. "You seemed like you had a good time, and I know _I _enjoyed myself-"

Fang's stare was cold as ever but his nostrils flared and Max caught it. She leaned forward with furrowed brows, "Is that what this is? You think I didn't like it? Did you black out during my orgasm, or what? Fang, just because you- hey!" She tipped his chin with two fingers and pulled his face away from the damn sinks and back to her.

He met her scowl with a steely glare and a flush across his cheeks and ground out, "I couldn't even keep it in."

Max opened her mouth, shut it, and started again, "Wait, _that's_ what this is about? Just 'cause we fumbled for, like, 10 seconds during what - I'm reminding you - was our first time _ever_?" She shook her head and looked at him like he was crazy. "It's not that big of a deal."

Fang eyed her dubiously.

"I'm serious!" she huffed. "I don't get why this is an issue. Literally everything else was so completely good that it doesn't even rate." She scrunched up her nose, "I'm already looking forward to more practice. Aren't you?" She waggled her head salaciously and Fang rolled his eyes to frown down at the sudsy water between them.

Max's expression softened and she reached up to stroke his cheek, leaving a soapy trail and dropping water from her little finger. "Really, Fang. Not a big deal. We'll get better at it." He looked at her solemnly. "Give me your hand." She caressed his wrist and took his palm in hers before he could respond. She guided him down between her legs and pressed his palm flat against her still-swollen sex, tightening her hold when he tried to pull away.

Fang cringed hesitantly, "Aren't you still sore?"

Max shook her head fervently. "S'not hurting. It's just...tender. You know, natural consequences of popping the cherry." She offered him a cheeky smile and tightened her grip when he tried to pull away again. "Fang! Don't be a pussy!" His eyebrows hitched and she snorted when she realized what she'd said and where she was holding Fang's hand hostage. She snickered, pecked him on the corner of his lips, and resettled her forehead against his. "Okay, okay. But seriously, it felt good, right? To finally do the deed?"

Fang grunted softly and Max flashed her teeth and then kissed him again. "Tell me about it," she murmured against him. "Tell me what it felt like." She smoothed his hand flat over her still-swollen sex so that he was cupping her intimately. "The good parts," she amended, "which is basically everything, but still." Her lips twitched in a private smile and she looked at him expectantly.

Fang was silent for a moment before whispering roughly, "It was the best."

"Yeah it was," Max beamed before twisting her face into a suggestive smirk. "Tell me about it. About _what _you felt, and _how _it felt, and _how bad_ you wanna do it again."

Fang looked confused but his lips twitched with the beginnings of a smirk, "You want me to talk dirty to you?"

Max cringed a little. "I...guess?" She rocked her head forward, pushing his back and bumping noses with him and grinned teasingly, "C'mon. Tell me what it felt like for you."

A full-on smirk spread across Fang's face and he opened his mouth to begin but hesitated. He thought it was hilarious, joking with Max about it before, but now she wanted it for real and it was like every dirty thought that ever crossed his mind had been flushed down the toilet. And there were many. He'd been keeping them from Max since they were fourteen.

His eyes darted around the middle distance for a second before he licked his lips and kissed Max softly and let himself remember her soft lips on the rest of him. He found his voice and leaned forward to whisper against her cheek, "It was like sliding into...into," he shook his head and began again, "I've _never _felt anything so good. You were so wet, I didn't even know you could _be_ that wet, and," his eyes flashed to hers, "_I_ did it to you."

"You did," Max whispered. She smiled breathlessly when she felt her heart pick up speed and wiggled a little closer to Fang's hunched form. "Go on."

Fang shut his eyes for a moment, distracted by the shift of her so-soft flesh against his cupping palm, and cleared his throat. His other hand came to rest on Max's knee, his fingers idly stroking the smooth skin of her kneecap. When he spoke again, he couldn't keep the husky rasp from coloring the edges of his words. "You were tight - God, Max, such a good fit, like you were made for me. Tight and wet and hot, and your skin was so smooth," his free hand slipped up her thigh and dipped to the underside lightly, fingering her shaved skin.

Max shivered and leaned forward to trail her lips along his jaw, suckling there. She could feel her heartbeat quicken and pulse and her pussy began to throb dully. "Do you feel it?" she whispered against the still-smooth skin of his neck. "How bad I want you?"

Fang pressed his hand against her more intimately and felt a flush spread through him. He paused, breath caught in his throat, and he couldn't help but palpate the swelling flesh as he felt her heartbeat begin to course beneath it. Max gave a whispered, whimpering sigh and pressed her face into the crook of his neck. His wandering hand found its way to the small of her back and pulled her a little closer still.

His fingers pressed and Max's hips hitched towards him and the little insecure piece of him that had flooded him with incongruous shame at his brief fumble was shattered in the wake of his need to stoke and satisfy _her_ need, and his tongue found his words as he held her tight.

"I'm gonna take you again, Max. I'm gonna tease you until your pussy is weeping for me and then I'm gonna take it." He stroked the hardening welts framing her center and was encouraged by her shuddering sigh. "We'll go to the beach. It'll be dark, secret, and the moonlight will make you glow when I make you sweat." His fingers rubbed back and forth across her thick folds until they were seated between them. "God, Max, you're wet," he rasped and crooked one finger against her entrance, "even in the bath, you're wet."

"Tell me about the beach," she breathed against him. Her voice was husky and deep and Fang felt his heart begin to pump into his groin. His eyes crinkled in a smile and he added a little pressure to his crooked finger before moving a second to join it.

"I'm gonna kiss you," he pressed his lips to the edge of her ear. "Slow, and deep, _tasting_ you. I'll undress you, slowly," his free hand trailed up to dance on top of her shoulder, "and I'll watch you," his soft hand followed the curve of her collarbone, "and your lips are gonna be swollen because I kissed all the feeling out of them," he stroked the soft valley between her breasts and followed the crease underneath one until he came around to the side.

Max whimpered lowly and rubbed the tip of her nose back and forth across his neck.

"You'll be naked under the moon, Max, smooth and soft, and I'll be over you. I'm gonna kiss you here," his hand smoothed around the supple swell of her breast, "and I'll suck on your flesh," he lightly circled the dusky rose disc, grinning when the flesh grew taught and her nipple peaked and she let out a little mewling moan. "You'll taste of salt and sweet, sweet _Max_ - God, I love the way you taste.

"And I'll take you in my mouth and..." He rolled her erect nipple between his thumb and forefinger and gave her a firm pinch. Max responded by attacking his neck with her mouth. Fang groaned and pressed his fingertips against the slick between her thighs. His long fingers pushed between her folds and slipped inside just as he turned to capture her lips between his, his free hand still palming her goosepimpled bosom.

Max groaned as his fingers slid home and mumbled against his lips, "Yeah, yeah, yeahyeahyeahyeah..." Fang curled his fingers once, thrust into her, and twisted a little. Max gasped and clenched and whispered against him, "Gentle, babe, gentle."

Fang pulled back slightly to assess her expression. She let out a breathy laugh, "I _do_ wanna do it again. Later. Just gimme a little more recovery time."

Fang settled his fingers back inside and tentatively pressed his thumb against her little nub. Max's mouth went back to work on his. _Probably a good sign._ He hooked his fingers against her pelvic wall, anchoring his hand so he could rub his thumb back and forth over the swollen hood.

Max groaned and draped her arms around his shoulders. Her breathing began to turn into shallow, gasping pants with soft voice. She drunkenly leaned her nose against Fang's cheek, then his chin, rocking against his jaw until her bent head nestled into the crook of his shoulder. Fang tweaked her nipple again before sliding through the warm water to fondle its neglected sister. Max's lips drew taught across her teeth and her brows furrowed in pleasure and she dug her fingers into Fang's shoulder blades.

Fang let his free hand sweep over Max's body hungrily, following the curve of her ribs down her back, smoothing beneath her and rubbing along the underside of her thigh before finding her collar again and gripping her neck gently. Max breathed deeply and gnawed, open-mouthed, against his Adam's apple and the thin, barely scruffy skin of his throat.

Fang's thumb picked up its rhythm and he flicked the hard nub beneath her swollen skin as fast as he could. "When we're on the beach," he breathed, "I'm going to kiss every single inch of you," he tweaked her nipple again and she shuddered with a desperate cry. "I'm going to make love to you until you scream," he breathed noisily through his nose and caught Max's lips with his before smirking, thumb rubbing frantically. "I'm gonna make you _come_ again, Max. I'm gonna make you come while I'm buried so deep inside you that you see stars."

Max cried out in between her harsh gasps. "Please," she whimpered and Fang brought his other hand between them to rub her clit with renewed vigor, fingers still lodged inside her. Max sucked in a huge, long breath with a breathless squeal at the top and whined softly, strained, in Fang's ear. Fang couldn't stop the moan that escaped his lips when he felt Max's slick walls clench furiously around his fingers and her swollen pussy pulsate beneath his palm.

Fang's kisses turned sloppy, long and languid, mouthing tenderly against the back of Max's neck until she nuzzled up to meet him. She parted her lips in a permissive sigh and let him kiss her all over.

Fang slipped his hand from Max's body and reached up to cup her face, thumbs hooked under her ears to press into her cheeks, fingers slipping up into her hair. Eventually, they slowed and Max fell slack against him, curling up against his chest and scooting forward until she could link her ankles behind him.

After a few moments of quiet panting, when her body had stopped quivering and she could breathe again, she interrupted Fang's soothing touches along her back and hips to plant a solid kiss on his chest. "Thank you," she looked up at him with a satisfied grin. She kissed the tip of his nose and held his gaze, "We good?"

Fang smirked and gave her hips a squeeze. "I _knew_ you liked dirty talk."

Max's eyes flashed but she smirked right back at him and bit his nose gently, "And _you_ like making me come."

Fang leaned forward to suck on her earlobe and growled, "I _love_ making you come."

Max wiggled her eyebrows and hummed seductively, "Mmmm, then you'll have a _great _time later tonight, hubby dearest."

Fang cocked an eyebrow at the nickname and rubbed up and down Max's shoulders, "Aye aye, _wifey._"

Max snickered and splashed him playfully, only to shriek and duck behind her wings when he splashed right back.

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><p><strong>So, Fang is only sorta-okay at dirty talking. But to be fair, he's never really done it before (aka I've never written it before). Good thing he can talk with his hands! I have some ideas for how to make his dirty-talkin' dreams come to life in the next chapter. I'd like to say the next update won't take a whole week again, but now that I've passed The Big Event (last chapter), my grand ideas are slowing down. So, we'll see.<strong>

**Replies to my most recent reviews (aka returning the love):**

**Nola96, I'm with you on the last chapter feeling rushed. That's because, well, it kind of was. I wanted so badly to post it for Friday, and I cut some corners with the editing that I always do, and it shows. At some point I'll go back and smooth it out, but, eh, at least it's up? I paid extra attention to the transitions in this chapter, so hopefully it flows better.**

**zroc - Thank you, as always! I'm glad you enjoyed Max's morning warm-up, I love that you enjoyed the teaser, and I am thrilled that you liked the face plant. As long as Fang's there to pick her up at the end, it's all good, yeh?**

**FAXalltheway - It's coming, I promise. =)**

**Kloves2read - I'm so glad to hear you say that. It's so frustrating to read fics where the characters are just borrowing names and faces from canon, so I'm glad this one is living up to the idea of 'in character.' Usually when I edit through, I'll go once for grammar/spelling/flow, once for physical reality (i.e. remember to write their wings in), and once for in-character (where I cut Fang's dialogue and make Max a little more rude). I'm with you on the shower idea, I'm sure they'll fit that in somewhere. As for the sequel-ish idea, I kind of love it, but I don't think I'm cut out to write it. I've never been pregnant or yet had a close friend go through pregnancy, and I think the "write what you know" rule applies here. Still, it's an interesting idea, I'll file it away. =)**

**fyi. . - Aw, thanks so much! Funny, I'm actually mulling over some ideas for a book and the most I can come up with is character pieces between the two main characters. I'm not sold yet on the idea of writing a whole book that's character-driven, rather than major-environmental/cultural-event-driven, but I'm encouraged that you love my character writing so maybe I'll just keep at it and see where I end up. (Also, thanks for the sweet review on "Fang's Solace." I'm still really partial to that piece and it's wonderful to hear when people enjoy it. I have half a mind to write a companion one for Max at some point, but that's still a long way off. Shameless plug, did you check out "Maximum Bliss" as well? That's my first, but I'm pretty partial to it, too.)**


	17. Day Seven - Evening

**Nola, I totally agree. I think I was probably pushing it by letting them both have their happy endings together, but I think the fumble was redeeming. **

**zroc, I hope the dirty talk wasn't too awkward, haha. Fang and I both need practice. But Max liked it, so I'm giving him a pass for now.**

**Anyway, time for more practice!**

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><p><strong>Day Seven - Evening<strong>

Max sniffed comfortably and burrowed closer to Fang. He looked down his chin at her and tightened his hold on her hip. They were tangled up on the couch with full stomachs and a movie playing. Max was content to be wedged between Fang and the cushions, enjoying the full-body contact with lean muscles and woodsy clean-man smell underneath his cotton pajama pants and t-shirt. She didn't mind his fingers running circles over her hips and lower back between her shorts and tank, either.

The final credits began to scroll and Max's thoughts wandered _again_ to the way they had spent the morning.

And the afternoon.

And the cleanup from the afternoon.

She hadn't been able to stop thinking about it all day, through packing up her clothes (and the black lace) for the flight tomorrow, or through chopping the vegetables for the scrappy dinner that Fang made to use up their limited groceries, or through playing freaking _footsy_ with him under the table while they ate.

Then, of course, were the chocolate macadamia nuts.

Fang figured it was funny to try to toss dessert down Max's front collar. He grinned like the devil every time she had to fish one out from her bra, shamelessly ogling her breasts as she shoved her hand between them. She tried to scowl but her eyes were filled with mirth and her lips kept twitching into a smirk and Fang looked very, very pleased with himself.

The credits ended and the title screen played on loop and Max hummed happily, turning to dig her chin into Fang's chest and looking up at him suggestively.

"Hey, Fang?"

"Hmm?" His hum vibrated through his chest and Max's grin widened.

"Wanna hear some good news?"

He looked at her expectantly. His dark eyes followed her fingers as they tip-toed up his stomach, over his ribs, to scratch playfully at his nipple.

"I'm not sore anymore," she simpered. Fang blinked at her for half a moment before understanding registered on his face with widened eyes and a quick swipe of his lips across his lower lip. Max snickered and laid her head on his shoulder, fingernails still scratching lightly across his chest. She crooned seductively, "Too bad we have to leave tomorrow. One extra day doesn't feel like enough, you know." She stretched up to plant a slow kiss beneath Fang's ear.

Fang sighed contentedly and twisted his fingers in the thin hair behind Max's ears, "I have some ideas about how we can spend our last night."

"Oh, you do, do you?"

Fang slithered further down the couch and twisted his hips to face her. His lips parted and the tip of his nose met hers and his open mouth drew into an anticipatory grin as he leaned forward. So. Slowly. Breathing her air, almost _tasting_ her just by being so close. He slid his nose up and down the side of hers and just as he was going in for the kill-

"Shit!" Max jackknifed up with wild eyes. Fang stared up at her, dumbfounded. _What the hell just happened?_ Max's face crumpled into a petulant grimace, "We forgot to get presents for the Flock."

Fang frowned, nonplussed, "They know what we came here for, Max. It won't be a big deal."

"How do you know that? Every time I mentioned our plans to Nudge, she went _on_ and _on_ about how _awesome_ it was that we got to go to Fiji and how _badly_ she wished she could come. We can't go home empty-handed!"

Fang groaned and scrubbed his hand across his face, "So we'll give the airport gift shop some business." He stroked her arm with the back of his knuckles. "We'll deal with it tomorrow, Max."

Max ignored him with a shake of her head and an eye roll, "That's so im_personal_, Fang. We've been in freaking Fiji for a solid week, you think Nudge is gonna be happy with an overpriced keychain?" Fang watched warily as she began talking with her hands. "Maybe...maybe if we set our alarms, like, two hours earlier, we can head over to the island early and...uh... I'll just leave you with the luggage at the airport, and I'll go shopping. Wait, scratch that, _I'll_ stay with the luggage at the airport, _you_ can go shopping. Flight's not until eleven. What if we..."

Fang tuned her out, took a breath, and pinched his eyes shut. She wouldn't let herself relax until they had it solved, and his rigid cock wouldn't relax until they finished what they started. He sat up with a sigh and wrapped Max in his arms with a kiss on her cheek. "C'mon." He slid off the couch with her in tow and pulled her to the door.

Max tugged back against him, "It's already dark, Fang, nothing is gonna be open on the main island, and I don't want to have to find this place in the dark again."

Fang side-eyed her as he emptied his pockets. "We're not going to the main island."

"Then what are we doing, Fang?" she deadpanned.

"We're going to pick up shells."

Max hurried after him down the porch and barefoot into the sand, mind whirring. "Wait, you mean for gifts? You think that'll be enough?"

Fang paused and held his hand out for hers. "Some of them are pretty spectacular, actually. If you hadn't been so busy trying to tan, you might have noticed." She looked at him in warning and he smirked, pecking her lips and continuing his way down the beach.

They fell into a comfortable silence as they picked their way through the surf. Max gasped when the water they kicked up glowed blue. Fang turned to look at her with a soft smile and explained, "It's, uh, bioluminescence. There's plankton that glow when you touch them."

"That is so cool."

Fang hummed in agreement and led Max further down the beach. The moon was bright and the stars were brilliant but it was hard to find anything good in the dusky night. Almost every time Max caught the moonlight glinting off of something at her feet, it ended up being broken or worn down. But Fang slipped a few things in his pockets, and Max did find two or three whole shells in the end, and after a half hour of searching she felt a million times better about getting on the plane the next day.

They turned back and Max strung Fang along by the tips of her fingers, arms swinging freely. She skipped lightly over the tiny caps of each shimmering blue wave as the ocean lapped at the shore. She grinned and flipped around to face him, eyeing him obviously before roughing her sandy hands through his hair.

Fang's eye twitched and he looked down at her suspiciously. She snickered and twisted her pointer finger in the strands above his ear before petting his face affectionately. "Your beard is coming back in already."

He cocked an eyebrow, "Beard?"

Max rolled her eyes, "Fine. Stubble. Whiskers. Fuckhot manly scruff. Whatever." She scratched at his chin with her short little nails and giggled. "Dude, if you ever grew a full-on beard, I might have to come after you with scissors."

Fang's eyes widened in mock surprise, but he was clearly already distracted. She'd called him fuckhot again and his hands quickly found her hips, and his thumbs, the cool stretch of skin above the hem of her sleeping shorts.

Max snickered, oblivious, and tried to form his wild hair into some sort of faux-hawk. Mirth danced in her eyes. "You'd look like Father Time, or...or like a Duck Dynasty cast member or someth-"

Fang interrupted her with a kiss. The aching desire in him had been lurking beneath his skin since he dragged himself up off that couch, and having Max's hands all up in his hair made him feel wild. He let loose a rumbling growl as his hands dipped down to cup her ass firmly. Max gripped his broad shoulders to steady herself. She felt his fingers dip up into the legs of her shorts to finger the crease where her thighs met her cheeks, tug at the loose fabric, and then drag up to the front of her waistband.

"Fang, what the heck?" she asked breathlessly. She felt her heart begin to race under his assault and his hands abandoned her shorts to grip her ribs, thumbs against the sides of her breasts.

"I want you," he ground out in her ear and she shuddered involuntarily, feeling her panties grow damp and her breath catch in her throat.

"Here?!" she squeaked and Fang inhaled the soft skin on her neck, working her over tortuously with his rough lips and stubbly shadow.

"Mmhmm," he smacked against her and growled, "I'm tired of waiting." He slipped the strap of her tank off her shoulder, noting that there was no bra strap to go with it, and set to work making a bruise with teeth and tongue.

"Waiting? We just- mmmmm, _Fang_... It's been less than 6 hours." Max moaned and melted into Fang's hungry hands as he gripped the dimples behind her hips and tugged her against him. She glanced back towards the faint glow from the bungalow, "We're so close to home..."

Fang growled and pulled her earlobe into his mouth, nipped it, and released her slowly, "I was hard in the bathtub, Max."

"Oh, God," Max whimpered as Fang brought them to their knees in the damp sand, hands and lips everywhere he could reach. She had been thinking about this all day, exactly this, after Fang's words in the tub, but she didn't think he'd actually-

"You just didn't notice," he panted, "because you were too busy..." He tugged her shirt hem up over her stomach, "...busy coming on my fingers." She groaned and twisted out of the ribbed tank and threw her head back with an embarrassingly loud gasping moan as Fang tasted the skin of her bare breasts, gathering her up in slack hands and then leaning forward to lay her back on the damp sand. She didn't even mind when the grit worked its way between her feathers.

He stretched out above her, breathing hard, his eyes darting from her face to her heaving chest before settling on her eyes. She watched hesitation and uncertainty play across his features and decided to put the poor guy out of his misery. No more teasing.

"It's not like there's anyone around to see, right?" She grinned up at him breathlessly and he gave her the most brilliant, eye-crinkling smile before rearing up to pull his t-shirt over his head.

Max wiggled out of her sandy shorts as Fang awkwardly stripped himself of his own pants and then he was dragging his hands down her moonlit body, thumbs lodging in the hollow of her hips and pulling her firmly towards him. Fang's powder-coated fingers left glittery white trails across Max's smooth skin and he had to stop himself from touching her where he wanted to most. "Are you ready for me?"

Max nodded with fluttering eyelids, "So, so ready."

Fang leaned down onto his forearms and reached down to position himself at her entrance. Max's breathing grew shallow in anticipation and her sandy fingers dug into his shoulder blades, working their way under his folded wings and making him shudder. He curled his fingers into the hair at her temples and kissed her deeply, savoring the sweet, heady flavor.

Max groaned into him, "Don't stop, please don't stop," so he nudged forward. His stomach clenched at the warm, slippery, _coming home_ feeling of his bulbous tip sliding into her tight folds. But then Max's cries shifted from her needlessly persuasive 'don't stop' into a frantic, "Stop, Fang, stop! Ohmigod!" and her heels were at his hips pushing him back out again.

He reeled a little, utterly confused, and looked at her for an answer. Max spread her thighs and pushed herself up on the heels of her hands. She blinked with wide eyes and stared at him pointedly, "You just...your _dick_ is covered in _sand_."

Fang looked down and saw that, indeed, his straining, swollen cock was dusted with the glittery grit. He groaned and ran his hands through his hair. He could feel the sand at his roots, and under his fingernails, and behind his ears. It wasn't surprising that Fang Jr. had become the next victim. _How did he not think this through?_

Max gave a determined sigh and stood up, reaching down for Fang's hand. He looked up at her questioningly but took her offer. "I don't want sand in my cooch, but I don't want to stop, and," she glanced pointedly down at his stiff soldier, "I don't think you do, either."

Fang moved towards the crumpled pile of clothing, "Home's not far," but Max turned him by his shoulder and kissed him, hard.

"We don't have to go home." She smirked and winked, actually _winked_ at him, and turned away to walk into the waves. Her shuffling made the bioluminescence ripple in fantastic bursts with each step. He followed her swaying, naked ass without hesitation until they were both chest-deep in tepid, glowing water and washed free from sand below the belt.

A thrill shot through Fang when Max turned to him, naked and wet and smiling so seductively that it almost _hurt_. She slid her arms around his shoulders and pressed herself - her whole, uncensored self - against his nakedness and they were kissing gloriously. Everything felt deep and wet and warm - the gentle lapping from the salt water, and the not-so-gentle lapping of Max's tongue, and Fang's memories of what it felt like to be inside of her. He rolled his hips and pressed himself firmly against her lower abdomen. His flesh slipped tantalizingly against hers in the soft water. He grinned against her lips when she moaned reflexively and ground her hips right back.

Fang's arms dipped to caress the backs of her thighs and then he pulled her up, slim and virtually weightless in the water, to straddle his abdomen. She looked down at him gleefully and rolled her hips against him, "Remember the other day?"

Fang caught her lower lip between his teeth and sucked on her gently, "I'm remembering _all_ the days." He fixed his grip on her thighs and dug his toes into the sand so he wouldn't fall over. Max pressed her knees into his waist so that she could separate her hips from the trunk of his torso. She reached down between them, repositioned Fang's erection, and paused to look at him meaningfully.

Fang wasn't sure what she was trying to communicate, but she was beautiful and she was _his_ and he knew he didn't need anything else. Probably ever. He rolled his hips a few times and gave a few shallow thrusts until the head of his cock was just inside her, claiming her, taking her. He marveled when her head fell back and her mouth fell open and she worked herself the rest of the way down until he was fully sheathed inside her. He groaned at the tight, the warm, the wet, and leaned forward to suck intently against the soft place just beneath her ear.

They were joined by cheeks and hips, her hands fisted in his hair, his taking the soft flesh of her thighs in hand, and the only witnesses were the pale moon and the phosphorescent water and the breathtaking spray of stars above them.

Max hummed and moaned and rubbed her hips against him, mumbling, "I love you, I love you, I love you," over and over again. She felt deliciously full, everything was _Fang Fang Fang_ and she thought she could barely breathe even though her breaths were so deep that she felt them all the way down to her curling toes. Fang squatted down just enough that Max could fold her legs and brace her ankles against his knees. Her upper arms were draped over his muscled shoulders. She sucked on his ear, the way she knew he liked, and his parted lips caught on her skin as he dragged his mouth across her silky, salty neck.

His hands slipped from beneath her thighs up to her breasts, where he gave her a solid squeeze, and then back down to cradle her ass. Just the way he had _that day_ on the beach, except this time they didn't have bathing suits in the way. She pushed with her ankles and he lifted her up and then back down again. On the second thrust, they went too far and Fang popped out. Max came back down and Fang's cock pressed back for half a second before slipping in-between her butt cheeks like an inflatable torpedo.

Before Fang could blink in embarrassment, Max took possession of his mouth and deftly reached down to reposition him and slide back down until they were pressed flush against each other. She gripped his forearms and pulled his hands to her waist before wrapping her arms back around his neck and mumbling, "Let me."

She pushed against his thighs with her ankles again, rising up on his shaft slowly until she was almost empty. She shifted carefully, keeping him inside and getting a feel for how far she could move, before she slid back down his length. They groaned together and she moved again, rocking up and down, up and down, finding a rhythm that made her pussy clench and Fang's fingers dig into her ribs. She couldn't seem to close her mouth as the warmth of pleasure radiated from their coupling, making her feel tingly all over.

Fang's groans kept getting caught in his throat as Max moved against him, undulating and gyrating and making him feel _so damn good_ that it was all he could do to keep from taking control. Still, his hips thrusted to meet her every time she fell down on him, and his hands dragged around her waist, feeling her taught stomach and her tense back, and then his fingers were dancing through her wings, stroking her feathers until they stood at attention and began to unfold for him.

Her head rolled and her forehead met his. Her intense gaze pierced him from behind her lashes and all he could hear were her panting breaths and the delicate notes that echoed from her throat with each exhale. His hands left her wings to come around and cup her breasts again, to which she mewled and let her head fall back again. His mouth fell on her, licking at the salt from the ocean and her sweat, teasing her already-erect nipples with his teeth.

She gave a whimpering cry and gripped his shoulders, pushing down on him at a faster pace with a light twist at the apex and a rough grind each time her hips met his. Fang nibbled harder on her nipples, burying his face in her supple flesh and working her over with his tongue.

Max felt hot all over. Fang's groans morphed into animalistic growls and his lips left her skin to gasp and twitch aimlessly against her. His shoulders tensed impossibly under her grip and his hold on her loosened and she knew he was about to lose himself in her. Suddenly, her ache wasn't strong enough and she felt frantic for release.

"Fang, Fang Fang Fang," she pleaded in her ear, "Can you touch me?" She shakily pulled his hand down to where they were joined.

He hissed when his fingers felt the source of his ecstasy. Her snatch was swollen and firm and her lips quivered and his throbbing cock pumped in and out of her and it was all too much. His fingers felt numb but he found her clit and rubbed frantically over the hood, bumping against the hyper-sensitive skin of his shaft.

Max squealed and rode him desperately, feeling herself tighten all around him beneath the wild scrubbing of his fingers against her. She heard him gasp and felt his head fall against her shoulder and his rubbing hand falter. The next second, he was pumping his seed deep inside of her. She felt warm, feather-light pressure with every spurt and her body was coiled and ready to spring but she knew it wasn't enough yet.

"Don't leave me behind," she whispered. She gave a short, loud cry when Fang's fingers shifted and he pinched her clit, rolled it between his fingers, and pulled her right over the edge. She keened desperately, collapsed against him, and succumbed to the burning pleasure that wracked through her body. She rode out her orgasm around Fang's already softening dick, listening to their heavy pants as their hearts slowed.

Max pulled herself up enough to wrap her legs around Fang's waist and drape herself over his shoulders. She dipped her fingers in the water and made florid blue trails that glowed against her skin. Fang took a shuddering breath and wrapped her so tightly in his arms that she felt her air sacs loose air.

"I love you, Max," he whispered. "I'll always love you."

Max smiled softly and closed her eyes. "I know." Her smile grew and she reached up to run her ocean-soaked fingers through his sandy hair. "And you only fell out once."

"Seems like a decent rate of improvement," he mumbled and turned towards the faint glow of the bungalow.

"Gonna let me walk this time?" Max murmured into Fang's wings.

"Nope," he planted a sweet kiss on her shoulder and waded through the still ocean with Max wrapped around him. The moon was bright and the glowing water made everything feel like magic and he didn't want to think about leaving tomorrow, so he just concentrated on Max's gentle breathing and the give of the sand under his feet.

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><p><strong>AN: Seems like if I ask you questions, you guys are more likely to respond. But everything ends so peacefully and I kind of don't want to mar it. You should review anyway. I'm about ready to finish this story up. Just one or two more chapters to go. Maybe an epilogue.**


	18. Day Eight - Morning

**Day Eight - Morning**

Fang needed to piss. That was the first thought that crossed his mind when he woke up. The second was that Max had apparently already gotten out of bed and he had slept through it. He'd thought he'd never see the day when he didn't bolt awake, slightly woozy from the adrenaline that pulsed through his head.

The third thought came in a rush of images from the night before coupled with the insistence of his morning stiffy and the knocking of cabinets in the bathroom and the rush-hush of water when the shower cut on.

Silently, he strode toward the bathroom and paused just outside the door where he could see Max's foggy reflection in the mirror. She was very naked. She disappeared behind the frosted shower door and Fang pushed his way inside to do his business.

The toilet lid made a hollow thunk when he propped it up.

"Hey! A little privacy in here!"

Fang was kind of glad the shower was louder than the hiss of his stream. He looked over his shoulder, "What's the big deal?" He shook off and turned to watch her blurry shape shift behind the clouded glass.

She huffed indignantly and he heard her slam a bottle down on the shelf. "I'm in the shower!"

"So?"

"Sooo, typically people shower alone, Fang! Go back to bed, or- no, wait, can you do me a favor? Is the feather scrub thingy out there? I can't get all the sand out from-"

The rushing of the water drowned out her words and Fang's eyebrows furrowed. "What?" He pulled the shower door open a crack and paused when he saw Max's back, naked and wet and covered in little soap bubbles. She turned around just then and her eyes flashed and Fang couldn't pull back fast enough.

"What the _hell_, Fang!"

His dark feathers puffed up defensively and he stumbled back into the sink counter with a grunt.

"You're naked!"

"So are you." He turned to the mirror and snagged his toothbrush off the counter.

The hollow thud of an empty travel shampoo bottle punctuated Max's huff, "Well, I'm sup_posed_ to be, I'm in the _shower_. What's your excuse?"

He mumbled around foaming toothpaste, "Didn't think I needed pants to take a piss."

Max groaned and peeked out from behind the door again. "Is this really what we've come to? Open-door piddling? Where's the mystery?"

Fang spit and snorted, "I thought the neighboring dog crates precluded this level of embarrassment." He swiped his lips with a washcloth, "At least I only took a leak."

"Fang!" her eyes were wide. She had brief flashes of what it would be like for whoever married the Gasman and hurried to banish the thoughts. Naked Fang interrupting her shower was more important.

"And I didn't do it the shower," he turned around with an easy grin and folded his arms across his chest.

Max eyed him for a moment, noting the way his biceps flexed and the way his entire torso seemed to direct her eyes towards his half-deflated morning wood. All of a sudden, Naked Fang interrupting her shower seemed like a very good thing. He had turned back to the mirror and was inspecting the scruff on his neck, but she saw his eyes flicker to her reflection every few moments. She smirked demurely and bit her lip and pressed herself against the edge of the door. "Do you _wanna_ do it in the shower?"

Fang eyed her warily in the mirror. "Is that...something you want me to do?"

Max felt a smile creep across her face and a flush darken her chest, "Isn't it something _you_ want to do?"

Fang chewed on the inside of his cheek for a second, evaluating. Max started feeling kind of dumb, standing halfway out of the shower with Fang taking care of personal hygiene in front of her. Finally, his eyes darted around nervously and he asked, "Are we still talking about peeing?"

Max blanched, "What? No! No, definitely not, I didn't...oh, geez..."

Fang relaxed visibly and stared up at the ceiling, "Thank God." His eyes rolled back down to meet Max's in the mirror and then widened. "Wait, you meant _do_ _it_ in the shower?"

Max rolled her eyes, "Duh. C'mon. And I'm serious about the sand, it's all up in my secondaries from last night and I can't clean it out myself."

It was almost funny, how quickly Fang was on board. His incredulity slid off his face and his signature smirk twisted the corner of his dark-fuzzed jaw. His chin dipped and his eyes darkened and he spun around, wings half-open, to lean against the shower wall above Max.

"You want some of this, huh?"

Max blinked at his revived cock and then titled her chin up to match his smirk. "C'mon, Mr. Ride, before the water gets cold. And grab the feather comb."

Fang reached behind him blindly for the comb and leaned down to mumble against her lips, "I'm sure Pierpont's hot water never runs out."

Max snarled playfully and grabbed his wrist to pull him into the shower stall. She could have sworn the temperature shot up at least ten degrees. Her body was already responding to having Fang standing close enough to tower over her, with quickening breaths and firming flesh between her legs. He ran his hair under the shower head and scrubbed his face roughly before turning back to her with a softened gaze.

"I love you," he whispered, eyes flitting over Max and the rivulets of water running down her body. He shook his head and cleared his throat. "Sandy feathers?"

Max nodded and leaned up towards him on tip toes, "It's driving me crazy."

Fang leaned in with a flickering smirk, "How crazy?" And then he was kissing her, tasting her and claiming her and touching her soft skin with his itching-twitching fingers. Her sweet velvet tongue yielded to his and he could feel her heart beat in her mouth.

Kissing Max was always, always awesome, but she had invited him in for more than just kissing. Fang had to make an effort to slow down. He took back his tongue, sucking on her cupid's bow lips and letting his own fall shut. He placed his hands on her shoulders and manipulated her until she was standing with her back pressed to him. His kisses trailed along past her ear and down between her shoulders as he went.

Max relaxed against him. Her stomach clenched in anticipation when his hands felt down her body, spending a glorious few minutes playing with her nipples before brushing down to her hips and back up to her bosom. He made at least ten massaging passes before one hand dipped between her thighs to press against the needy flesh.

Fang stilled and whispered against the top of her ear, "You had sand here, too. Better check it out."

Max trembled, "Better check...yeah..." She sighed deeply when his fingers divided and he started rubbing front to back with firm strokes. He felt every crease of every fold and closed his eyes in pleasure when he felt the hard welts rise and the start of something silky slick in the center of it all. His cock throbbed, knowing that _he_ made Max respond like that.

Max grinned lazily and leaned back into him, "You can do that as looooong as you want."

Fang pressed his lips to her wet hair and curled himself around her, hands on her hips. He bent at the knees and rolled his hips forward until his cock bounced between her legs. Gently, he nudged her legs closed around him. Max gasped and Fang groaned and then he resumed his heavy petting.

As he worked her with his hand, he began to thrust lightly, just enjoying the pressure of her thigh muscles and the slick warmth from her heat above him.

Max's euphoria swelled and she felt all her most sensitive parts tighten. She gasped, "I'm _so ready_ for you."

Fang nipped her jaw and slid his free hand to her belly, "You want it?"

Max whimpered, "So bad." She rolled her hips twice before Fang restrained her. His massaging hand shifted to finger her clit. Max mewled desperately. Fang's gentle thrusts slipped back and forth and it was like crushed velvet and silk. He graduated from idle fingering to a firm grasp and began to roll her swollen nub between his fingers and the skin of its head. Max cried out softly and pushed her hips back against him.

Fang felt her impending ecstasy and rolled his shoulders with a crack before bearing down with quick circles. He whispered gruffly, "You're about to come, Max. I can feel it. I can feel you dripping all over my cock." His flat palm pressed against her stomach and angled her hips up towards him. You're gonna come, and while you're still coming, I'm gonna push inside."

"Oooooohmigod," Max gasped. Fang nudged her legs apart with his knee and she stumbled a little, falling forward to brace her hands against the tile walls and exposing herself to him fully. Fang's fingers tortured her clit with rapid fire strokes and she felt the delicious tingle in her toes.

"Can you feel it, Max?" he growled huskily. "Can you feel it building? God, Max, you're so ready, I can almost smell it." He ground his hips against her and then pulled back, reaching down to align his leaking tip with her entrance. "Come on, Max. Come for me, baby. And then I'll take you and you come all over me, too."

Max's breathing was coming in shallow pants and the fiery tremors slowly spread to her engorged pussy, radiating inward. "Uhngh...ah...ah!" she cried out and her head arched back before falling slack between her shoulders with a long, quivering breath. Fang's rubbing hand went flat and reached down to help guide himself inside of her from behind.

He slid carefully into her quivering flesh and instantly felt his balls tighten. He pushed forward in between the unbearable tightness of each clinching contraction and Max let out a long, open mouthed moan. He filled her up and immediately started to move, hands on her hips to hold her to him.

Max felt dazed and overly warm and tingly, the way you feel when something makes you shiver, but without the whole shivering bit. Her skin tightened with goose bumps as Fang's hands smoothed over her wet skin in grand arcs that followed her curves, pausing beneath one butt cheek, an extra moment with his fingers spanning her bouncing breast, little finger catching in her navel, and then on again to other places.

His thrusts were smooth and slow and steady. He carefully worked every inch of himself inside every inch of her, filling her again and again from behind and stroking against new places that they hadn't yet touched. His knuckles ran up and down her spine and she moaned.

"Uuuuh, this is delicious...better...than chocolate," she mumbled and bent at the waist to brace her hands against the knee-high shower bench. She gasped when the entire feel of _Fang_ inside of her shifted and all of a sudden he was _deep,_ _so deep_ and she couldn't get enough. Fang responded with a rough grab of her hips and a husky grunt.

Max felt him start to pick up his pace and moaned roughly, "Figured out...how to pace yourself...huh?" She tried to catch her breath but the rhythmic pounding felt like so _much_ that she couldn't help her quiet keening.

Fang's face twisted in pleasure. He was bottoming out every time, cock firmly sheathed in her creamy insides. He thrust to the hilt and held himself there with trembling thighs and groping hands, grinding his hips around and around without pulling back. Max's keening deepened and Fang grunted breathlessly, "Are you ready to come again?" He kept grinding around and around.

"I..." Max whined throatily and tried to catch her breath, "I don't know. It...it feels...good, ohmigod, but...but I'm not...I'm not ready yet."

Fang kneaded her cheeks firmly and then pulled up against the skin with flat fingers. Max squealed as her lips were pulled taught around his cock and her clit pulled back. Fang's grinding turned into powerful, shallow thrusts, picking up speed and whapping Max's nub with his swinging jewels on every pass.

Fang's head fell back and his thrusting faltered. He released his grip on her flesh only to reach for her hip bones and pulled her impossibly closer. He took a handful of shuddering breaths, thrust twice more, and then bent forward over Max's body with the power of his coming. Everything was tight and pulsing and throbbing as he emptied his seed into Max's swollen flesh.

Her hips bucked and her locked elbows went numb. She had half a second of disappointment that she hadn't reached the finish line with him before she felt a tidal wave of ecstasy swell and break and melt into her skin. Her pussy was practically dancing in orgasmic bliss, fluttering and clinching around Fang's softening dick so intensely that she saw stars in the corners of her vision. She leaned forward until her shoulder and cheek were pressed against the cool tile of the shower wall.

Fang took a deep belly breath and wrapped his arms around Max. He drew them both into a standing position and his hands smoothed from her flat stomach, one reaching up to cup a breast and the other gliding down to cup her still-throbbing pussy. Max's head lolled back against his shoulder and he buried his nose in the crook of her neck, marveling at the intermittent twitching of Max's long orgasm. They stood there like that, intimately entwined, and let the still-warm shower wash away the sweat and the release.

Eventually, Max's vulva stilled and Fang's arms lifted and he began to coax one wing away from her body. He reached for the specialized under-feather brush and went to work cleaning diligently around each translucent feather shaft with gentle fingers and careful attention.

Max sighed under the hot shower spray and leaned her forehead against the cool tiles under the shower head again. She felt her tingly muscles unlock one by one as Fang's soothing hands picked through her sandy feathers. They still had at least an hour before they had to be on the plane, but it wasn't nearly enough.

"I wish we could just stay here," Max gave a forlorn sigh. "Just you and me. Hot sun and sand to lay on. An ocean that glows. Never-ending hot water. Never-ending sex."

Fang laughed gently. "And how many times did I ask you to let me find us an island?"

"Hah, I gotta admit, uninterrupted sex would have been a major selling point."

"At fourteen?"

Max rolled her eyes, "Okay, well, not at fourteen." She flexed her shoulders to let the other wing out. "Sucks that it's too late now. The CSM is still fighting for a voice, and I've got public speaking booked through next year, and you've landed your dream job, and what would we do without the Flock, anyway?"

Fang kissed the nape of her neck and paused, "It wasn't an option then, either. The Flock needed you. The world needed you. You needed them, or you wouldn't be _you._ It took me a while to get that."

She peeked back at him and he went back to work at her feathers. "But you fought so hard for it."

His eyes flashed wistfully, "We were only 14. It's not like I had a full grasp of what I was asking for. I only wanted you to need _me_." He carefully smoothed down her sand-free feathers and wrapped his arms around her middle, chin on her shoulder. "But you're right. Never-ending sex is persuasive." He nipped at her earlobe and she slapped him away with a very un-Max-ish giggle. "C'mon, we've gotta get out of here."

Max groaned, "Don' wanna," but she shut the water off anyway. They toweled off unhurriedly. Fang may have towel-whipped Max's luscious ass once or twice before she came at his thighs with hers. They did a last run-through in the bungalow that had been their home for a week, in which Fang discovered his forgotten 'Desert Rain' candle and unpacked a little just so he could wrap it in a t-shirt and nestle it at the bottom of his pack. And then they were strapping themselves up with duffle luggage and taking running leaps off of the powdery sand to catch a headwind back to the mainland. Max blitzed through the gift shop for over-priced t-shirts ('To wrap the shells in, duh') while Fang leaned against the wall with arms crossed and a resigned look on his face.

It felt surreal to buckle into her seat on the private plane next to Fang, ready to sit through a disgustingly long flight back to their depressingly busy reality. The past week was like a dream, a little slice of heaven, and Max wondered if she could convince M. Pierpont to fly them out here again next year. Fang had already pulled his laptop onto his knees when he leaned over to kiss Max on the temple and rub soothing circles up and down her thigh. She grinned when his little finger traced the inner seam of her jeans.

Ten minutes in, Fang looked over at Max and smirked at her unconsciously parted lips and the gentle snarl of her sleep-breathing. He pressed his lips to her temple once more, gave her leg a squeeze, and closed his laptop screen. He'd be back at work tomorrow. Right now, he just wanted to pull Max against his shoulder and breath through her hair and watch the clouds sail by without worrying about everything they had lined up for them at home.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: Why is it so difficult to garner reviews for M-rated fiction? Is it because most of the fanbase for MR is still in their teens? And because M-rated fics don't come up in the normal fic list unless you fiddle with the settings? Is it because people feel squicky about writing to the author of something that makes them feel a little funny in their pants sometimes? It's just interesting to watch literally hundreds of views come in with so little feedback. I don't mean to complain, or threaten (I'm gonna finish this story, dammit! With or without gratifying words from readers), I'm just genuinely confounded. Do you guys have any ideas about it? (Haha, see what I did there? If you answer, I'll end up with more reviews. Brouhaha!)**

**Anyway, I'm hurrying to finish this story and to do it well. I'd love to have an even 20 chapters, but I only have ideas for one more, and "Chapter 14" (the tease) pretty much doesn't count as a real one, so maybe it doesn't even matter. I'm hurtling towards having written enough words for a YA novel, that's probably enough of an accomplishment for now. But yeah - the next chapter will be the last one. Time to wrap this baby up. Is there anything you desperately want to happen before Max and Fang go back to real life?**


	19. Day Eight - Evening - Final Chapter

**Day Eight - Evening - The Final Chapter**

The wheels hit the asphalt with a jolt and the little private plane shuddered. Max woke with a start and choked on her spit. Fang watched her unhelpfully. She glared at him as she hacked into her hand and he glanced pointedly at the little wet circle on his shoulder. Her coughing petered out and she gasped, "Well...that's what you get for letting me sleep the whole time, bucko. We missed a prime opportunity."

Fang stood up slowly to stretch and made a point of rubbing his shoulder. "Oh yeah?"

"We could've joined the mile-high club today," she deadpanned.

"We don't need a _plane_ to join the mile high club, Max," he smirked and pulled his luggage from the overhead bin.

She just laughed and slapped his ass. He yelped and she cackled gleefully while he gripped the lip of the storage compartment and leaned down towards her, "Don't start what you can't finish, _Maximum._"

She waggled her eyebrows, "Who said I wasn't gonna finish it?"

Fang kissed her chastely on the lips and nodded towards the window. "We have to get through the welcoming committee first."

Max turned to look and a grin split her face. They were all there, the Flock and Mom and Ella, to welcome them back home. Max yanked her bag from over head and hurried off the plane behind Fang and into the waiting arms of her mother, followed closely by Gazzy, Nudge, and Ella.

"My sweet girl," Val whispered in her ear and gave her one last squeeze before holding her at arm's length with a sentimental smile creasing her eyes.

"Hey, Mom," Max smiled back warmly and then grinned at the others.

Iggy and Fang thumped each other on the backs and then Fang stepped next to Max to slide his arm around her waist, fingers curled loosely around her hip. Ella cooed softly and giggled, elbowing Nudge, whose eyes were practically glittering as she made poorly-concealed suggestive faces at Max. She cleared her throat nervously and shifted away from Fang's grasp, but he stepped towards her again and renewed his grip. She looked up at him pointedly and he smirked, kissing her temple before looking at their little family.

"We brought presents."

Max cringed at the squeals from the girls and threw up her hands in defense, "Hey! Let's get home first, okay?"

They piled into Dr. M's van with Max and Fang squished in the back between Nudge and Gazzy. Everyone was clamoring on about everything that happened since they left (one high school dance, _two _new blenders, a heart-wrenching adoption for an old dog at the clinic, and Max didn't miss Iggy playing with Ella's fingers, either). Everyone except for Angel. Max frowned at the back of her corn silk head before finally asking, "Is something wrong, Ange?"

Angel shook her head furiously but didn't turn around. Max shared a meaningful look with Fang and then leaned forward between the middle seats to try and catch Angel's eye, Fang's hand flat against her lower back. "What's up, baby?"

Angel huffed and turned to Max. She looked like she was going to be sick. "If I'd've known I'd have to listen to _this,_ I wouldn't have come to pick you up!" she snapped.

Max pulled and cocked her head, "Wha-huh?" Angel rolled her eyes and groaned. Max wondered if she was that obnoxious when she was twelve. _Nah,_ she thought, _Jeb up and died and I had to be in charge. I was practically a saint._

Angel stuck her tongue out in disgust, "I don't want to _hear_ about what you _did_ all week! And you weren't a saint, you were _bossy!_"

Max blushed furiously. She reached back blindly to push Fang's hand away and whisper-yelled, "Angel! How many times have I told you to stay out of my head!"

Iggy snickered into his elbow and Gazzy looked repulsed.

Angel rolled her eyes _again,_ "And if your minds were like this, I might have stopped sooner!" She flopped back in her seat and whined, "Anyway, it's not _you,_ it's _Fang!_"

It was Fang's turn to flush. His cheeks reddened and he slouched down in his seat, cringing when Max slapped him on the chest with a glare. He shrugged, "I _told_ you not to start what you couldn't finish!"

It was Max's turn to roll her eyes as she settled back into her seat. Fang wedged his arm behind her again and pulled her closer. Angel whined petulantly before wrestling her smartphone out of her pocket to play Fruit Ninja. Nudge turned to Max with a wicked grin and giggled, "So it sounds like you had a good time? All alooooone with Fang on a secluded island for a whole week?"

Fang frowned, "I'm right here, Nudge."

She just snickered and leaned in closer to Max, "Did you find my present?"

Max furrowed her brows, "Present?"

"_You_ know," Nudge persisted, "the _lace bustier and stockings?_ Ella didn't think you'd be brave enough to put it on, but I figured since it was your _honeymoon_ and all, you'd make an exception. And anyway, you wear girly stuff more often now that we're pretty much grown up, so I figured you might go for it. I mean, we knew _Fang_ would go for it."

Iggy twisted around to stare at Max's left eyebrow, "Say what now?"

Ella perked up and swiveled around to peer over Iggy's shoulder, "Wait, what are we talking about? I want in!"

Nudge ignored Iggy and looked to Ella, "The sex-ay lingerie we bought for Max, remember?" Max coughed violently and Fang leaned forward purposefully to balance his elbows on his open knees with clasped hands and a bowed head. Iggy whooped and smacked Fang on the shoulder while Gazzy's eyes went wide with wonder until Fang whapped him upside the head. Angel sneered and mumbled something under her breath before slipping in her ear buds.

Ella beamed and looked at Max, oblivious, "Ohmigod, did you _love_ it? They had white and pink and even polka dots, but Nudge and I figured we'd go for black because, duh, _Fang._Did he appreciate the hooker heels?"

"Ella!" Val's eyebrows shot up and Ella cringed back indignantly.

"What, mom? Max wouldn't let us throw a bridal shower! Clearly we had to take matters into our own hands."

Valencia pursed her lips and glanced at Max hiding behind her hands in the rearview mirror, "I understand that, _honey_, but maybe you should talk about that with Max later? _In private_?"

"Thank you!" Angel cried, "Somebody with some sense!"

Iggy just snickered and looked towards Fang, "Dude, you lucked out. You got the sex AND the sex appeal!"

Fang looked up from between his hunched shoulders and wasted a glare, "Seriously, Igs?"

Gazzy groaned and ran both hands through his hair with a look of horror, "Yech! Max is practically my mom! I don't want to talk about this!"

"Thank you!" cried Max. And Fang. And Angel.

Max tugged against her seatbelt anxiously. It would be so, so easy to bust through the back window and just fly herself home. It was very tempting. Instead, she settled for rubbing soothing circles between Fang's shoulder blades until he grabbed her hand and hissed up at her, "You're not helping." After that, she had no problem keeping her hands to herself.

They finally reached home and Max couldn't bust out of the van fast enough. She reached above her head with a yawn and Fang's arms slipped around her belly, duck-rocking from side to side with stiff legs. "Remind me why we let them pick us up?"

Max turned in his arms and kissed his chin, "Because they begged us to let them." Angel shoved past them and Max snickered. "They missed us, can't you tell?"

The others rushed past them into the house and Ms. Martinez tapped Max's shoulder, "C'mon, you two. Those kids want their presents, and I've got something for you, too."

Max raised an eyebrow and followed her mother up the front steps. "For me?"

Valencia turned and shot the pair a wry grin, "For both of you. To show how much I love you, _even_ when you leave your own wedding reception early." She looked pointedly at Fang, who blinked stoically, and pushed her way through the front door.

Everything was noise and squeals and chaos. Fang pulled out shells and cheap shirts as fast as Max could give them away. Iggy's went on backwards, which made Ella giggle and Max roll her eyes, because he'd known to feel for the tag in the collar since they were ten and Jeb first _gave_ them shirts with tags. Nudge and Angel compared glittering shells and Nudge ran off to grab her clear nail polish so they could gloss them. Gazzy grinned his thanks down at Max (when did he get so _tall?_) and when she turned around again, her mom was leading Fang into the computer room.

'For you,' she mouthed and tilted her head conspiratorially towards the darker room. Max grinned, glanced at her busy flock, and followed her mom.

Max nudged the door halfway shut and perched herself on the arm of the chair Fang occupied while he scrolled through pictures of well-lit, empty rooms with white walls and wood floors. Max looked at Val questioningly, "What is this?"

"Well," her mom sighed wrinkled her nose nervously, "I guessed that now that you're married, you and Fang might be ready for a place of your own. I did some research and found this perfect apartment just down 10th street, not too far from here..." she trailed off and watched as Max leaned forward to look with Fang.

"I hope you don't feel like I'm kicking you out, I just know how hard it is to be married and have a houseful of nosy family members." Val's fingers twisted through her ponytail and she gestured to the screen. "It's not massive or anything, but the rooms are big enough to stretch your wings, and it's hardwood so you don't have to worry about feather dander in carpet, and it's less than a ten minute walk to work for _both _of you so you don't have to worry about flying if the weather's bad or anything."

Max looked away from the monitor with an ear-splitting grin and gripped Val's hand, "Thanks, Mom. Really. This looks perfect!"

Fang sat up in the chair and minimized the window before offering a small smile, "Yeah. Thanks, Dr. M."

"Oh, please, Fang. You're my son-in-law, it's about time you called me 'Mom'!"

He cleared his throat and sat up a little, "I'll work on that."

She narrowed her eyes playfully, "You'd better." They all smiled back and forth until it felt awkward and Val finally reached into her front pocket to retrieve the keys. "You should probably go look it over. You know, make sure Iggy and Gaz put the furniture where you like."

"It's ready now?" Max gaped.

Dr. Martinez smiled brightly, "That's my gift to you. The first 6 months rent are paid already and we moved your furniture over while you were in Fiji. So, yes, it's ready right now."

Max couldn't help but glance at Fang. "Wanna get out of here?"

Fang smirked and let his eyes wander over Max's rumpled traveling clothes, "Sure. Lemme just hit the restroom."

Fang stepped out and Nudge burst in, "Did she tell you, did she, did she?"

Valencia chuckled and nodded kindly, "Yes, Nudge, they know." She headed back towards the main room with a backwards glance at Max and Nudge squealed.

"Ohmigod, you guys are gonna love it! We were all there helping with the furniture and cleaning, and Ella and Ange and I tried to decorate but you can only do so much when you shop at Goodwill, you know? And Iggy set up..." she trailed off self-consciously and bit her lip, grinning at Max. "I'm just so happy for you guys. You have _no_ idea."

Max laughed and smiled down at her toes, "Yeah, it's kinda crazy, huh? It finally happened."

Nudge smiled wistfully before glancing at the door and edging closer to Max, waggling her eyebrows and grinning, "Mister P left a message for you. He said the lady who cleans the house, or, like, takes care of the house or whatever, found some clothes that you and Fang left from your honeymoon."

Max frowned, fingering the new apartment keys, "But we packed everything. I double-checked."

Nudge cackled and Max eyed her warily. "Oh, they weren't _in_ the house, Max. Apparently, they were all crumpled and sandy and scattered on the beach about a mile from the front porch." She waggled her eyebrows shamelessly and shimmied her shoulders.

Max blanched. "Oh."

Nudge grinned. "Yeah, _oh._ Sounds like you and Fang made the most of your _secluded_ honeymoon. What was it like, seriously? I mean, obviously you were far enough away from other people to feel safe taking off your _clothes_ in the middle of the _beach,_ but were you guys, like, the only ones on that island, or were you just really, really hoping that none of your neighbors decided to enjoy the ocean while you were doing the nasty in it?"

Max pursed her lips and looked to the ceiling, "It's not happening, Nudge."

Nudge pouted, "No details?"

"Not on your life."

Nudge chewed on her lip and narrowed her eyes. Max watched her suspiciously until she finally broke and shrugged, "Whatevs. I'll figure out how to make you talk. You just wait."

Fang came out of the bathroom, wiping his hands on his pants, and glanced at Nudge before turning to Max, "Should we be worried?"

"Probably," she muttered and leaned heavily into Fang's shoulder. "You ready to blow this popsicle stand?"

Iggy's voice floated from the front room, "Only if you're ready to blow _his_ popsicle stand!" There was a slap and a shriek and then Valencia's don't-mess-with-this-Hispanic-mama voice spewing something in Spanish, which was at least 15 times as intimidating as when she told them off in English.

Fang's nostrils flared and Max buried her face against his chest with a groan. "Pleeeeease can we leave?"

"Yup," Fang bent to grab their pile of duffels and strapped them across his chest, ready for flight. Max shoved the keys (_their _apartment_ keys!_) safely into her back pocket and led the way to the door.

She turned at the last second and pointed sternly at her little family. "Next time we see you, you better chill. Got it? Fang and I are married now and that's just how it's gonna be."

Ella just giggled and relaxed against Iggy's side on the couch. "Max, you know we're just giving you a hard time, right? I'm sure I speak for everyone when I say that I'm thrilled that you guys are finally hitched."

Iggy squeezed her shoulders and smiled glibly, "Exactly. You guys have always been a team. It's crazy that it didn't happen sooner."

Gazzy grinned, "Yeah, like, you're basically mom and dad, so you might as well put a ring on it."

Even Angel smiled a little and looked up from Instagram to catch Max's eye. _**I really **_**am**_** glad that you guys are married.**_

Max just smiled, _**We're glad, too, sweetie.**_

Angel's smile dropped, _**I **_**know**_**.**_

_Aaaand, moment's dead,_ Max made an eek face at the floor and sucked in a breath through her teeth, turning to hug her mom. "Thanks again. For everything, not just the apartment."

Val pulled back and smiled tearfully, "You know you're still welcome here, right? The door's always open, whatever you need."

"We know, mom. Really, thanks." Max squeezed Val's shoulder and smiled softly. "You said it yourself, it's just a couple of blocks away."

"I know, honey, I know," Val pulled her in for one more hug and then pushed her out the door, "Okay, off you get! Before I turn into a mess!"

Max waved and Fang fluttered his fingers at the chorus of good-byes and then they were off, wings cutting through familiar air currents and gliding most of the way to the apartment (_their_ _apartment_!) before scouting out a relatively secluded landing spot in the back of the building and then hiking up two flights of stairs. Fang glanced at Max and winked before turning the key.

Max folded her arms across her chest and followed him inside. She poked her way around the living room, past the kitchen, peeked into the small second bedroom with the computer desk, and then found the master bedroom with the en suite master bath. Fang dropped the duffels at the front door and came up behind her to stare at the California king sized bed dominating the room. Max turned around and nodded once, "They did pretty good. I'm impressed." She smirked up at Fang, "I guess we could handle staying here for a while. Just you and me."

Fang set his jaw and glanced from the bed to Max. "I dunno."

Max balked, "Whaddaya mean you don't know? It's a sweet apartment, close to everything important, furnished with," she craned back to look at the bed, "an awesomely large bed, what's not to like?" She looked back to Fang and was caught by surprise when his lips met hers. His tongue dipped behind her lower lip and she just about melted into him.

"I just think," he murmured against her, "that I'll feel better about it if we test out the bed." He placed his hands on her ribs and began walking her backwards until her knees hit the mattress and she sat down with a whoosh. "Don't you think, _Mrs. Ride_?"

Max smiled knowingly and laid back on the comforter. "If you insist, _Mr. Ride._" She reached up to scratch her fingers in the stubble along Fang's jaw and he hummed in contentment. "I kinda really like this. You should keep it."

He looked at her with fire in his eyes and leaned down, cold thumbs slipping beneath the hem of her shirt, "Good thing they let me have it at work."

"Good thing," Max whispered back and closed her eyes to meet Fang's eager kiss.

* * *

><p><strong>AN: A sweet end this little story. I started as a half-baked idea with 8 chapters planned, but it grew into so much more. (I seriously hit a word count appropriate for a YA novel - whaaaaat?) I'm so thankful to everyone who's read along with me and especially those who've taken the time to review.**

**First Responder Award: Nola96,** for being interested enough in my stories to read each update within hours and always, always letting me know what you thought. I knew my sneaky teaser chapter would work on you because you're so dang speedy! Your reviews have been inspiring and helped direct my story at times when I wasn't sure where to go. You especially didn't let me forget about Max & Fang's playful banter (my favorite parts to write, too!), so thank you for helping me keep my eyes on the prize.

**Second Responder Award:** **zroc** for almost managing to beat Nola a few times. =P Thank you for your consistent, thoughtful notes and for being excited for Max and Fang.

And to everyone else who took the time to review, thank you thank you thank you for stoking my writer's fire and made me feel anxious to post the next chapter. I didn't expect to get much feedback in the beginning, so I didn't anticipate how positively affected I would be by your notes.

I have a small handful of ideas for more MR stories, and I'd like to keep to the K and T ratings for a while, but it'll still be my writing so if you like the character bits in this (your reviews say you do!), you might like what I come out with next. Make sure you follow me if you want to know when I post my next story, and if you haven't yet, check out my two one-shots, "Maximum Bliss" and "Fang's Solace."

Oh, and please do let me know what you think, especially now that the story is finished! Final reviews, GO!


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